Smoldering smidje

Daria and Mimoko stared in horror at Kaylee.

"Your eyes... they're like-"

"Chihuahua's? Of course they are, but they're also much different. They aren't the standard blue ring like the common fodder, they're unique! You know why? Because I'm on the verge of becoming a grandmastermind. That's why!"

"'Grandmastermind'? What on earth is that?" Daria asked.

"When I pose as Chaya, my rating increases to 2448. When I pose as Melisha, 2924. But my true blue rating..."

Daria and Mimoko gaped at the number that appeared on Kaylee's blue WWCF card.

"4002. Not even the strongest maestro comes close."

"That's impossible! That has to be inflated. There's no way-"

"Then let's prove it," Kaylee smirked as she pulled out a DESPER-like device from her breasts. "This here could be considered an upgraded DESPER. In fact, one just like it was used for the tournament just now. But not this one here. This one's mine, which I was saving for this very moment, THE TRUE 6B GRAND FINAL!" she shouted as she activated the device.

Pillars of flames, reminiscent of those from a forge burst forth from the water below, encircling the basilica from each corner. A long mane of gold flames then sprung forth from Kaylee's head along with some flaming gold eyebrows and a flaming gold pentagram in the center of her chest.

"Ah, hair. Hair, it singes my skin, but to see myself with hair, real hair, ahhh, I missed you, my beauty," Kaylee dementedly cooed.

Two chessboards then appeared with Daria and Mimoko unable to stop themselves from approaching them.

"See, I'm the real deal. Now, you lose, you die, by blowing up from the inside out. I lose, just my innards explode and I drown in the pond below. Any victory goodies you'd like?"

"Yes, hair. Everyone to get their hair back if they want to," Mimoko nervously glared.

"Well aren't you brave. Fine, you win, you get an unlimited supply of bottles filled with fluid that'll regrow your hair, eyebrows, eyelashes but only if you had hair to grow back and the first place and aren't permanently bound to baldness due to DESPER prerogatives. And with that, the rules proper. Since I'm so OP, I'll give you a lease on life. This will be a simul, where if any one of you beats me, you win. But anyone I beat before I lose gets subject to the punishment to. But, I'll give you some more bones. My time will only be paused if it's not my move on BOTH boards. So if I try and ignore one board when it's my move, my clock will tick down. And this clock will be uniform for everything, while you two each get your own timers. Speaking of which, 10 minutes, 2 second increment. That's the time control, but for me to get that increment, I need to have moved on both boards, so if you move before that happens, I not only don't get an increment, but my time even continues to tick down too. But to be fair to myself, you two only get 7 minutes each. And for one final bonus, if I'm put in check, I'll be unable to move on the other board until I'm out of check, the exception being if I'm in check at the same time on both boards, but I doubt that'll happen. Now, let's begin," Kaylee snickered as a pillar of flame erupted behind her.

"So it's a simul. Bold of you to assume you'll win against both of us," Daria glared.

"Why wouldn't I be? Who do you think it was that introduced Ai to Michiko?"

Daria's heart began thumping rapidly. "No, you're not saying-"

"Yup, I even brought her to China to face Xiao Lin and get her on board with the plan. The initial plan I hatched to try and get rid of you, but of course... damn grandmastermind..."

"Hmm?"

"Nothing, nothing. Now, let's begin the true grand finale of the Bald Bad Bitch Bondage Bullet... Blitz! Yeah, that works. So sorry you don't get to play bughouse, but for high-stakes like this, only regular style chess like this will do."

Kaylee opened both her games by moving her pawn to e4, with Daria and Mimoko responding with c5 and d6, respectively.

"A Pirc? Oh maestro, you fear me THAT much!? Well here's a gift for you," Kaylee sneered as she moved her king to e2 on Daria's board.

Both Mimoko and Daria stared in shock, but were interrupted by the sound of Kaylee slamming her knight down on f3 on Mimoko's board. "What's wrong? You need all the handicaps you can get against me. Or do you actually think every thing about me is a bluff?" Kaylee taunted.

Mimoko and Daria looked at each other before nodding and turning back to glare down Kaylee.

"Your arrogance will be your downfall," Daria declared as she moved her pawn to d5.

"I concur," Mimoko nodded as she moved her knight to c6.

Kaylee let loose a malicious and unsettling smile as the games picked up steam. On Mimoko's board, things went pretty normally with d4, c captures d4, knight captures d4, knight f6, knight c3, e5, d-knight b5, d6, bishop g5, a6, and knight a3 all being played in rapid succession.

Things also seemed fine on Daria's board with e captures d5, queen captures d5, queen e1, knight f6, king d1, bishop e6, and knight c3 being played. But then, Daria made an uncharacteristic mistake and moved her queen to f5.

"Okaa-chan!"

"TOO LATE! GUESS YOU FORGOT YOU AIN'T IN BLITZ MODE ANYMORE!" Kaylee taunted as she seized on the chance and moved her knight to b5 on Daria's board.

"... It isn't the end of it. Things are equal. But still... I'm sorry, Mimoko. I just moved without thinking. I'll equalize, so focus on beating her on your end," Daria nodded as she moved her knight to d5.

Mimoko shook her head and moved her pawn to d6. "Are you not feeling right? If so, let me know.

"Sorry, I was just in blitz mode. Some of those games we played were stressful, especially since we were bound gagged and freshly shaved bald."

Mimoko went red in the face as a cold air blew in her direction, tingling her smooth scalp. "It... It is understandable. Being shaved and bound like that then being forced into this deathmatch... is overwhelming. But you said it yourself, we can't be overwhelmed by stuff like this when it comes to chess."

"You're right. Sorry, I'll do better."

While Kaylee was an intimidating opponent with her supposed 4002 rating, Mimoko met her play of bishop g5 with pawn to a6, suddenly putting Kaylee on the defensive as she moved her knight to a3. B5, knight d5, bishop e7 later, and Kaylee had decided to trade pieces by capturing the knight at f6 with her bishop, resulting in Mimoko capturing said bishop with her bishop.

"You really are a pain to deal with. It's no wonder the Desperados want you gone so badly," Kaylee thought as she moved her pawn to c3.

Her glare further narrowed as Mimoko moved her bishop to g5, prompting her to move her knight to c2. But as Mimoko castled king's side, Kaylee began to smirk, though not because Mimoko had made a mistake. In fact, things were pretty much even on this board, but on the other board...

"Shit! Why is it now of all times when I get shaken off my game!?" Daria frantically thought.

Following Kaylee's play of knight f3 on this board, knight c6, bishop d3, queen g4, h3, queen captures g2, bishop g4, a6, and c4, Daria had quickly found herself in a losing position. Everything was going wrong, and worse, Mimoko was nowhere close to beating Kaylee.

"Well how's that!? This is what happens when I go all out. And you thought I was only 2900-level, that I was just one of those executive board cheaters with a chip implant that told me everything... TURNS OUT I'M DOUBLE YOUR SKILL LEVEL!" Kaylee laughed as she moved her pawn to a4 on Mimoko's board.

Daria grunted in dismay as she captured the knight at b5 with her a-pawn.

"Look at that, age is finally catching up to your brain. Or maybe, you couldn't see it even with a 3200-level brain!" Kaylee cackled as she captured the knight at d5 with her c-pawn.

Daria could only shake her head in dismay as she captured the pawn at d5 with her bishop, and watch as said bishop was captured by Kaylee's bishop. "I'm sorry. Mimoko, I'm sorry. I'm just too overwhelmed right now," she thought as she castled queen's side.

"AHAHAHAHAHA! MAESTRO! Oh, maybe I shouldn't call you that, since you're making 3200-level mistakes before a 4002!" Kaylee taunted as she slammed her bishop down on e4.

Daria could only shake her head in dismay as she moved her pawn to f5.

"What is that!? A free check!? Or have you just given up!?" Kaylee laughed as she captured the pawn at f5 with her bishop.

"OKAA-CHAN!" Mimoko cried.

"I'm sorry. Mimoko, I'm sorry. I just can't think properly," Daria trembled as she moved her king to b8.

"And that's to my benefit. Now, why don't I make daughter miserable too," Kaylee sneered as she turned her attention to Mimoko's board.

Mimoko had long since captured the pawn at a4 with her b-pawn, but with Kaylee now winning on the other board, tensions were high. Had she not set the rules so that her time would continuously tick down if it was her turn on any board, she would have just focused everything on her game with Daria. But since that wasn't the case and she was extremely sadistic, she decided to toy with Mimoko.

Rook captures a4, a5, bishop c4, rook b8, h4, bishop h6, b3, king h8, c-knight e3, bishop captures e3, knight captures e3, f5, knight captures f5, bishop captures f5, e captures f5, knight e7, yet still no breakthrough for either side. It was dead even, which was a problem because on the other board, Kaylee had just moved her bishop to e4, to which Daria responded to by moving her knight to e5.

"YOU BLEW IT! WRONG PIECE!" Kaylee taunted as she captured the knight at e5 with her knight.

All Daria could do was shake her head and move her queen to g5. This was easily her worst performance in recent memory.

"Ah, Daria's gonna die. LONG OVERDUE! And... it'll be in front of Mimoko. GUESS YOU'LL BE JOINING KOTORA AS ULTIMA-MASTER SLOP!" Kaylee cackled as she captured the pawn at b7 with her bishop on Daria's board before turning her attention back to Mimoko's board.

There, she decided to play around a bit more while Daria agonized over how to prolong things. G4, g6, f captures g6, knight captures g6, bishop d5, knight f4, h5, queen c7, then symbolically, Kaylee moved her pawn to c4, and everything imploded. Hope lit up in Mimoko's eyes as she pounced on the blunder and captured the bishop at d5 with her knight. Kaylee didn't see it though, and captured said knight with her queen. But after Mimoko captured the pawn at b3 with her rook, she noticed it as soon as she castled king's side.

"Are you kidding me!? HOW!? Tch, and you long since captured my bishop at b7, Daria," Kaylee scowled as she spun around towards Daria's board.

"Sorry, you looked so engrossed in things over there that I felt it would be rude to interrupt you to tell you I had moved," Daria chuckled as Mimoko moved her queen to d7.

Kaylee clicked her tongue and quickly moved her a-rook to a1 on Mimoko's board, but before she could make a move on Daria's board...

"Check," Mimoko stated as she captured the pawn at g4 with her queen.

Kaylee tried to ignore her, but due to the rule she put in place at the start, her hand kept phasing through the pieces on Daria's board, indicating she needed to first get out of check on Mimoko's board.

"Damn that rule. I'll make you pay," Kaylee snarled as she moved her queen to g2.

Mimoko instantly moved her queen to c8, hoping Kaylee would continue to play on her board, but Kaylee was more focused than that and immediately shifted everything towards Daria's board.

"Sorry about the wait, now how about a CHECK for your troubles!" Kaylee cackled as she moved her queen to e4 on Daria's board.

And thus, following Daria's play of king b8, knight c6, check, king c8, knight a7, check, king b8, knight c6, check, king c8, but if anyone thought Kaylee would be stupid enough to trigger a threefold, they were wrong.

"Che-eck, so sorry, but I'm not an idiot like you, so no threefold to see here," Kaylee mockingly snickered as she moved her queen to e6.

Daria scowled and moved her rook to d7.

"Ah, cat got your tongue? Or was it a meat cutter!? You know what happened to my fucking tongue!? Vrrrr! AHAHAHAHA! BET YA CAN STILL SEE THE STICHES! I CAN SURE AS HELL STILL TASTE EM!" Kaylee cackled as she slammed her knight down on e5.

With little choice, Daria captured the knight at e5 with her queen, and watched as Kaylee captured said queen with her queen. Mimoko was still left to watch and wait, but after Daria moved her pawn to c6 and Kaylee moved her pawn to a4, Kaylee shifted back over to Mimoko's board only to capture the pawn at a5 with her rook, but little did she know that she had just blundered into a forced mate, albeit a forced mate in 18 after Mimoko moved her rook to g8.

But Kaylee didn't care. She was too focused on beating Daria on the other board, and for good reason. Daria's play of rook a7 had just sealed her fate as now it was mate in 12.

"Oh, Daria, Daria, Himitsu, Himitsu, YOU'RE GONNA LOSE IN 12 MOVES!" Kaylee cackled as she captured the pawn at b5 with her a-pawn.

"You know, if you declare mate in a certain number of moves and you're off, you lose," Daria nervously smiled as she moved her rook to c7.

"This ain't like pool. We don't have that lame rule anymore in anything so declaring doesn't mean jack shit! but this check sure means something. Oh, and here's a little scrap for Smoothilina. Have fun watching mommy scream in agony as she explodes before you like Kotora!" Kaylee laughed as she moved her rook to a8 on Daria's board, and her pawn to f3 on Mimoko's board.

With mate in 8 on Mimoko's board for Kaylee and mate in 4 on Daria's board for Daria, it looked like this would be it for Daria.

"Mimoko, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, you're going to be hurt again, all because I was weak... again," Daria thought as tears began to pour out of her eyes. 

With an easy win before her on Daria's board, Kaylee naturally focused her attention there, but as she attempted to grab a piece, her hand phased through it.

"Check," Mimoko trembled.

Kaylee bit her lip in frustration as she turned back towards Mimoko's board. Mimoko had captured the queen at g2 with her rook, putting her in check, and forcing her to capture said rook with her king. The frustration continued as Mimoko delivered another check in the form of rook b2, leading Kaylee to move her rook to f2. Then came a third check in the form of queen g8, infuriating Kaylee further as she moved her king to h8.

"I'm so close! Damn all that time on the clock, I'm not gonna let them stall!" Kaylee thought as Mimoko captured the rook at f2 with her rook.

Daria then decided it was time to finally move her king to d7, but no sooner did she do so did Kaylee move her rook to e1. On Mimoko's board, she decided to stall for a bit before eventually moving her rook to a8. This time it was her turn to get pounced, as Mimoko rapidly captured said rook at a8 with her queen, leading to Kaylee moving her king to h4 in frustration.

Mimoko wasted no time in following up by capturing the pawn at f3 with her queen, but this time Kaylee decided to completely ignore her and focus all her attention on Daria's board. Daria tried to stall for as long as she could, but eventually was forced to move her rook to c8 to get a few seconds back on the clock.

"CHECK! TOO BAD, MIMOKO! I'M GONNA BEAT YOUR MOMMY, AND SHE'LL DIE RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU, JUST LIKE KOTORA!" Kaylee cackled as she slammed her queen down on e6.

"No you won't! I've got more time on my clock than you, which is still ticking down by the way," Daria nervously smiled as she moved her king to c7.

"Then I'll do you both a service. Simul move, and a check for you, Daria!" Kaylee madly shouted, her demented grin getting wider by the second as she captured the rook at c8 on Daria's board, and moved her pawn to h6 on Mimoko's board.

"CHECK!" Mimoko shouted as she instantly moved her rook to h2.

"TCH! But... Daria's now a second behind me! I'm gonna beat her. I'm gonna beat her before you can beat me!" Kaylee chuckled as she prepared to launch the winning move on Daria's board.

"You have to move when in check! Those were your own rules!"

"And I'm breaking them for victory!"

But Kaylee's hand suddenly began moving on it's own towards Mimoko's board.

"Wha-!? No, don't tell me, is it forcing me to move because there's only one possible move I can make!? No, no, NO! I'm so close, I NEED to beat Daria, otherwise this whole thing's a failure!" Kaylee frantically thought as her hand moved her king to g5 on Mimoko's board against her will.

But due to the speed at which Kaylee was forced to move, Daria had no choice but to move her king to d6 to avoid losing on time. "MIMOKO! SAVE ME!" she cried.

"OKAA-CHAN!" Mimoko cried as she moved her hand as fast as she could to make her move in time.

"TOO LATE! IT'S OVER!" Kaylee shouted as she grabbed her queen on Daria's board.

SLAM!

Kaylee smiled manically as she held her queen down on c6 on Daria's board, yet her smile soon faded as she coughed up blood and realized something was off. "No, NO! I captured the pawn at c6 with my queen... I- Blugh!"

But upon closer inspection, Kaylee had not completed her move before Mimoko had moved her queen to f4, winning the game.

"Checkmate... We win... Okaa-chan... is safe," Mimoko trembled.

Kaylee's eyes began to bulge in horror, as she realized what this meant. Mimoko had successfully mated her before she could mate Daria, meaning she had completely lost.

Life and memories flashed before Kaylee's eyes as she hurled up more blood and staggered towards the edge. "Kaylee... I'm sorry," she mumbled as her consciousness faded and she fell off the edge, ricocheting off the wall of the basilica's tower before hitting the water with a mighty splash.

Her DESPER-esque device then emitted a puff of smoke, signifying her true demise. Kaylee Shamir was dead, and Mimoko and Daria had both survived. The boards and flaming scenery vanished, as multiple bottles labeled, "Hair regrowth", appeared and floated down before the two.

Both mother and daughter cried as they embraced each other in a hug.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I messed up so bad and made you worry!" Daria cried.

"You should be! You almost died... I thought you were going to die just like Kotora!" Mimoko cried.

The two spent the next 5 minutes letting all their tears out as they hugged and embraced each other.

The full games:

White: Kaylee Shamir (4002) Black: Mimoko Inoue (2809)

1. e4 c5

2. Nf3 Nc6

3. d4 cxd4

4. Nxd4 Nf6

5. Nc3 e5

6. Ndb5 d6

7. Bg5 a6

8. Na3 b5

9. Nd5 Be7

10. Bxf6 Bxf6

11. c3 Bg5

12. Nc2 O-O

13. a4 bxa4

14. Rxa4 a5

15. Bc4 Rb8

16. h4 Bh6

17. b3 Kh8

18. Nce3 Bxe3

19. Nxe3 f5

20. Nxf5 Bxf5

21. exf5 Ne7

22. g4 g6

23. fxg6 Nxg6

24. Bd5 Nf4

25. h5 Qc7

26. c4 Nxd5

27. Qxd5 Rxb3

28. O-O Qd7

29. Raa1 Qxg4+

30. Qg2 Qc8

31. Rxa5 Rg8

32. f3 Rxg2+

33. Kxg2 Rb2+

34. Rf2 Qg8+

35. Kh3 Rxf2

36. Ra8 Qxa8

37. Kh4 Qxf3

38. h6 Rh2+

39. Kg5 Qf4#

White: Kaylee Shamir (4002) Black: Maestro Himitsu (Daria Inoue) (3200)

1. e4 d6

2. Ke2 d5

3. exd5 Qxd5

4. Qe1 Nf6

5. Kd1 Be6

6. Nc3 Qf5

7. Nb5 Nd5

8. Nf3 Nc6

9. Bd3 Qg4

10. h3 Qxg2

11. Be4 a6

12. c4 axb5

13. cxd5 Bxd5

14. Bxd5 O-O-O

15. Be4 f5

16. Bxf5+ Kb8

17. Be4 Ne5

18. Nxe5 Qg5

19. Bxb7 Kxb7

20. Qe4+ Kb8

21. Nc6+ Kc8

22. Na7+ Kb8

23. Nc6+ Kc8

24. Qe6+ Rd7

25. Ne5 Qxe5

26. Qxe5 c6

27. a4 Ra7

28. axb5 Rc7

29. Ra8+ Kd7

30. Re1 Rc8

31. Qe6+ Kc7

32. Qxc8+ Kd6 (Black won due to White losing the simul on another board)