DISCLAIMER: Yu-Gi-Oh! was created by Kazuki Takahashi.
Yuji Kandou groaned as he sat on the edge of his bed, hands in his black and ginger hair. He was a low level duelist invited to join a troupe of copycat duelists who entertained crowds by re-enacting famous historical duels. Because he had similar build and facial features to the King of Games, save for his eye and hair colour (which were hidden through contact lenses and a wig), he was chosen to act as Yugi Motou, with an exact copy of his deck (save for the Egyptian God Cards, of course).
However, he was only three weeks in, and it was already apparent that there was a problem: Yuji just didn't have the same skill and/or fortune for drawing the right card when he needed it in duels as Yugi did. His wins were pure, dumb luck, and his losses were just humiliating. Now he was being asked to perform in New Domino City against Kono Kiryu, easily the most talented of the troupe, and the duelist acting as Seto Kaiba. In a word, he was screwed.
With a loud sigh, Yuji flopped back onto the bed. Looking to his end table, he spotted and picked up his deck, looking over the cards given to him for performances. Despite being YEARS out of date, they were still perfectly good cards, more than capable of holding their own in a duel. Sometimes, it almost felt as though they were resisting him, refusing to work for a faker.
"What do you want from me?" Yuji asked, flipping to the Dark Magician. "I know I'm not Yugi, but..."
Rolling his eyes, Yuji reached over to put the deck back, until he heard a voice whisper, "Then don't try to be." Startled, Yuji dropped the deck, causing the cards to spill onto the ground, along with a few others he'd assembled prior to joining the troupe. Slapping himself in the face, he got down onto the ground to pick up the cards one by one.
"Man, hearing voices in my head," Yuji groaned. "As if I don't have enough problems..."
"You should try to accept the solutions to them, then," another voice said, only this one was much louder, and coming from in front of him. Looking ahead, he saw his wig and Millennium Puzzle prop hanging on the wall, but positioned in such a way that they looked level to a person leaned against the wall. A glowing eye-like emblem appeared under the wig, resembling the Eye of Wdjat on the Millennium Puzzle.
"...Am I going crazy?" Yuji asked aloud.
"A deck that isn't yours will never respond to you as well as a deck that is," the voice went on, sounding full of confidence. "Put aside the mask, and be who you were meant to be. Make the deck your own."
Yuji blinked, too stunned to do much else, before glancing down at the deck and muttering, "Make it...my own?" Looking back up at the wall, the emblem was gone, as was the voice.
Was that just in my head? Yuji wondered, looking at the cards, specifically the one in his hand: That of a dark-skinned magician with long, blonde hair. ...In my head or not, I think it was right. I'm sick of imitating. It's time I actually DID something with this deck!
It was the next day. Yuji stepped out onto a stage in front of a couple thousand people, wearing his Yugi costume and his Duel Disk. The crowd seemed a bit lukewarm for him, as it looked as though his reputation preceded him. Instead, they were a bit more excited as Kono walked out, likewise dressed as Seto Kaiba. Kono smirked at Yuji from across the stage, bearing the same cockiness that the real Kaiba was known for.
"So, 'Yugi', are you finally ready to surrender the crown of King of Games to me?!" 'Kaiba' demanded, setting his deck in his Duel Disk.
Yuji's eyes narrowed, setting his own deck. "I'm not here to talk. I'm here to let my dueling talk for me."
Kono blinked, noticing the tone in Yuji's voice. It wasn't a complete impersonation of Yugi Motou's, like he was drilled to use every duel, and yet, there was a confidence to it, one he hadn't heard in Yuji since he'd joined. Regardless, Kono shook it off, getting back into the spirit of things as the two activated their Duel Disks, setting their Life Points to 4000 each and shuffling their decks.
"Then let's do this!" 'Kaiba' shot back as the crowd cheered.
"IT'S TIME TO DUEL!" the two duelists shouted, drawing their opening hands.
"I'll go first!" 'Kaiba' declared, drawing his sixth card. "I summon Familiar Knight (1200/1400) in attack mode!" Slapping a monster card to his Duel Disk, it created a hologram of a mean-looking knight with a sword and shield prepared for battle. "Then I'll set two cards face-down and end my turn!" Kono placed two face-down cards in the Spell/Trap Zones before relaxing, keeping up his cocky exterior.
"It's my move, then!" Yuji called, pulling the top card of his deck free before surveying the battlefield. Let's see...Those two face-downs COULD be traps to stop an attack, but it's a lot more likely he's going for Familiar Knight's effect, summoning a Level 4 from his hand. And if I had to guess, it's a monster that'll help him bring out Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
Yuji looked to his hand, spotting the Dark Magician immediately. I have the Dark Magician, but I can't summon him yet. Besides, if I'm going to make this work, I need to do this MY way...
"I summon Skilled Blue Magician (1800/1800) in attack mode!" Yuji shouted, summoning a Spellcaster in blue robes, much to the surprise and confusion of the crowd, as Yugi had never used that card in his deck. "Next, I'll play the Spell Card, the Spellbook of Judgment! Now that I've activated this card, I can add any other "Spellbook" Spell Cards from my Deck to my hand at the end of my turn, up to the number of Spell Cards activated from now until then!" As this happened, a glowing orb of light appeared on Skilled Blue Magician's armour.
"Just what do you think you're doing?!" Kono demanded, baffled.
"Watch and see!" Yuji responded. "Next, I play another Spell Card: Shard of Greed, which will let me send it to the graveyard after I've drawn for the starts of my next two turns." Playing this card, another orb of light came to life on Skilled Blue Magician's armour. "Now, I'll play one last Spell Card: Card Destruction!"
"WHAT?!" Kono roared, realizing he'd been had.
"Sorry, 'Kaiba', but it looks like now we've both got to discard our hands and start over fresh," Yuji explained, discarding his last two cards, Dark Magician and Spellbook of Power, as Kono growled and did the same. As Kono discarded, Yuji saw the cards sent to the graveyard: Kaiser Sea Horse, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and Polymerization.
I KNEW it! Yuji thought with a grin. Kaiser Sea Horse! That one monster can be tributed to count as two when tributing for a LIGHT Monster, like Blue-Eyes White Dragon! And Polymerization would've been used later to fuse all three Blue-Eyes White Dragons!
The two duelists then drew their new hands, all while Skilled Blue Magician's armour gained one last orb of light, Yuji grinning at one card he'd drawn. "Since I just drew Watapon (200/300) due to a card effect, I can Special Summon it in defense mode!" Placing the card on its side on the Duel Disk, the small Fairy appeared on the field. "But that's not the only Special Summoning I'm doing this turn. While I've been playing spells, my Skilled Blue Magician has been earning Spell Counters, and right now, he has three."
Kono grit his teeth. "That means you've got enough to tribute it!"
"Exactly!" Yuji declared, pulling a card from his deck. "I tribute Skilled Blue Magician to Special Summon Gaia The Fierce Knight (2300/2100)!" In a flash of light, the Skilled Blue Magician disappeared, replaced by a mighty knight on a horse and carrying twin lances. "Gaia, attack Familiar Knight!" With that command, Gaia charged on his horse across the field and skewered Familiar Knight, blasting him into data bits, and reducing Kono's Life Points to 2900 as the crowd cheered.
What the heck?! Kono thought, watching everything unfold. I've watched every one of Yuji's duels since he joined the troupe, and he's NEVER pulled out a move like THAT before! And where did those new cards come from?!
"...'Yugi', how-?!" Kono started to ask, before Yuji reached up, removed his wig, took out his contacts and let his puzzle necklace drop to the floor, the crowd gasping in shock.
"Don't call me Yugi," Yuji insisted. "I may have his cards, but I'm not him, and I'm sick and tired of trying to mimic his every move. You wanna be 'Kaiba', fine, but I'm done!"
Kono blinked in surprise for a moment before letting himself smile despite himself. "...Okay, Yuji, then let's see what you've got. But first, because you destroyed my Familiar Knight, we're both allowed to Special Summon one Level 4 monster from our hand to the field! I choose my Rare Metal Dragon (2400/1200)!" With that, a large rhino-like metal Dragon appeared on the field, scuffing at the ground.
"Then I'll summon Aqua Madoor (1200/2000) in defense mode!" Yuji replied, summing a masked, aquatic-looking Spellcaster. "And that wraps up my turn, but before I pass it back to you, Spellbook of Judgment's effect activates, letting me add two Spellbook Spell Cards to my hand. Plus, for every Spellbook added to my hand by that effect, I can Special Summon a Spellcaster with the same Level as the number of Spellbooks drawn, so I'll go ahead and bring out my Spellbook Magician of Prophecy (500/400) in defense mode!" Yuji pulled two cards from his deck before summoning the young Spellcaster to the field, motioning to Kono to take his turn.
"Alright then, my draw!" Kono declared, pulling a card from his deck and adding it to his hand. Looking over the cards in his hand and on the field, Kono grinned confidently.
Yuji may have found his groove, Kono thought, but he's a long way behind me. And just in case he thinks he thinks he can get past my monsters, I've got a little surprise waiting for him on the field.
"Now, I summon Spear Dragon (1900/0)!" Kono shouted, summoning the blue and yellow Dragon. "And thanks to its ability, when it destroys a defense position monster, the difference between its attack points and the destroyed monster's defense points are inflicted as battle damage. But first, I'll let Rare Metal Dragon take out your Fierce Knight and the horse he rode in on!" Rare Metal Dragon immediately launched itself forward, taking a bite out of Gaia and destroying him, reducing Yuji's Life Points by 100. "Next, Spear Dragon will destroy your Watapon!" With this command, Spear Dragon swooped across the field and blasted straight through Watapon, its effect sending Yuji's Life Points plummeting down to 2300, before returning to its side of the field and taking a defensive stance. "Because Spear Dragon just attacked, it automatically switches into defense mode. Now, I'll set one card face-down and end my turn!"
Even using an exact replica of Kaiba's deck, Kono's skill is letting him use it effectively, Yuji observed. But he's going to need a lot more than just relying on that deck's pure power to stop me!
"I draw!" Yuji called, drawing a new card, causing his Shard of Greed to suddenly expand in size and shape, beginning to resemble a Pot of Greed. "Perfect! I tribute my Spellbook Magician of Prophecy in order to summon a far stronger Spellcaster: I summon Trance the Magic Swordsman (2600/200) in attack mode!" The Spellbook Magician of Prophecy quickly vanished as a new Spellcaster in light armour and wielding a magic sword took his place.
2600 attack points? Kono considered, looking back to his face-down cards. That WOULD be just enough...
"Next, because I don't trust your face-down cards, I activate my Spellbook of Wisdom, making Trance unaffected by all Trap Cards for this turn!" Yuji declared, activating said card and creating a cyan-coloured energy shield around Trance.
Kono growled, seeing his chance ruined, to which Yuji smirked and continued on. "Now, I'll attack your Rare Metal Dragon with Trance the Magic Swordsman!" With that order, Trance quickly leaped across the field and brought his sword straight down through Rare Metal Dragon, blasting it apart and doing 200 points of damage to Kono. "Next, I'll set one card face-down and end my turn."
"Then it's back to me!" Kono shouted, drawing a new card and grinning at what he pulled from his deck. "Now, I'll activate my face-down card: Trade-In! It lets me discard one Level 8 monster in order to draw two cards!" With that, Kono immediately discarded the card he'd just drawn, as Yuji quickly caught a glimpse of what it was: Another Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
"Blue-Eyes?!" Yuji cried as Kono drew two new cards. "But why would you send your best monster to the graveyard?!"
"There's more than one way to make use of a Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Kono replied, activating one of the cards he pulled. "Like this: I activate White Dragon Ritual, which lets me tribute my Spear Dragon in order to Ritual Summon my Paladin of White Dragon!" Suddenly, Spear Dragon roared as it was seemingly pulled from existence, replaced by a paladin riding an armoured Dragon.
Yuji's eyes widened in shock. "Oh no!"
"Oh yes!" Kono declared, now once again in full-blown Kaiba mode. "And now, I can use its effect, tributing it in order to Special Summon a monster from my deck: My final Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!" Paladin of White Dragon quickly vanished, making way for the far more powerful Blue-Eyes White Dragon, which roared in defiance at Trance the Magic Swordsman and Aqua Madoor. "And as much as I'm sure it would like to obliterate your two Spellcasters, it can't attack on the turn it was summoned via my Paladin's effect, so I'll go ahead and let you have one last turn with them before I crush them both!"
"We'll see!" Yuji shouted, beginning his turn and drawing a card, the Shard of Greed transforming into a Pot of Greed. "First, I'll send Shard of Greed to the graveyard to activate its effect and draw two cards!" The finished Pot of Greed vanished as Yuji did just that, getting some confidence back. "It looks like you were wrong, 'Kaiba'! The only monster getting crushed around here is your White Dragon!"
"You're bluffing!" Kono yelled as the crowd gasped.
"Let's find out!" Yuji shot back. "I play Monster Reborn to resurrect Gaia The Fierce Knight!" An ankh of light appeared on the field, bringing Gaia back to the field, his horse neighing loudly. "Next, I discard a monster known as the Noisy Gnat, which lets me increase the Level of one of my monsters by one until the end of the turn, so I'll turn Trance the Magic Swordsman into a Level 7 Monster!"
"But that's completely pointless..." Kono observed aloud before realization hit him. "...Unless!"
"Now you're catching on!" Yuji said with a grin as Trance and Gaia were enveloped in a circle of crimson light. "I overlay the Level 7 Trance the Magic Swordsman and Gaia The Fierce Knight! With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon! Come forth, Gaia Dragon, the Thunder Charger (2600/2100)!" The light erupted skyward before dying down, revealing a single red knight physically merged to an armoured Dragon, the spirits of the previous two monsters spinning around the new monster in the form of glowing spheres of light.
NOW I understand, Kono thought. He had these monsters all along, but didn't have the means to actually USE them. Now that he's merged his old deck with Yugi's, he has everything he needs. Still...
"Your Xyz Monster might be powerful, but it's still no match for my Blue-Eyes!" Kono insisted, only to notice that Blue-Eyes was nowhere to be seen on the field. "Wh-WHAT?!"
"That's why I activated my face-down card before the Xyz Summoning was completed!" Yuji replied, revealing his now face-up Spell Card. "The Spellbook of Fate! While I was still in control of a Spellcaster-type monster, I used this card's effect to flip your Blue-Eyes White Dragon into face-down defense position, and all I had to do was banish two of my Spellbooks from the graveyard!"
Kono growled, clenching a fist. "You...!"
"And even though Blue-Eyes is face-down, I already know its defense is only 2500, meaning I can destroy it!" Yuji proclaimed. "Now, Gaia Dragon, the Thunder Charger, destroy Kono's face-down monster!" With that order, Gaia Dragon fired a triple-pronged beam of green light from the tips of his lances and from the Dragon's mouth, blowing the face-down Blue-Eyes White Dragon apart. "And just like your Spear Dragon, Gaia Dragon's attack strength can pierce defenses and inflict the difference between the two to your Life Points!"
Kono huffed, watching as he lost 100 Life Points, bringing him down to 2600, just enough for Gaia Dragon to wipe out on its next turn if he got the chance. "I admit, that was a good move, but it's one I'm going to make sure you pay for!"
"Then let's see you come back from that!" Yuji dared his opponent, ending his turn.
"Fine, I WILL!" Kono roared, drawing a new card and smirking at the results. "I play Card of Demise! Now, I draw until I'm holding five cards, and in five turns, I discard my whole hand, but trust me, this duel won't last that long!" Pulling five new cards, his eyes lit up at one of the results. "In fact, I think I'm going to end this duel right now!"
"But how?!" Yuji demanded, confused.
"Just like this!" 'Kaiba declared. "I activate Dragon's Mirror! Now, I banish my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in my graveyard from the game, and merge their power into one unstoppable Dragon!"
"That card was never in Kaiba's deck before!" Yuji exclaimed.
Kono grinned, pulling off his own wig to reveal spiky blonde hair. "You're not the only one who decided to venture outside the box with their deck! Now, watch as I pull off a trick even Seto Kaiba couldn't do! I banish all three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in order to Fusion Summon...BLUE-EYES ULTIMATE DRAGON (4500/3800)!" The ghostly images of the three Dragons appeared over the field before merging together, forming a single Dragon with three heads. "Now, Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, blow away Yuji's Xyz Monster! Neutron Blast!" The three heads of the massive Fusion Monster opened and unleashed a triple-pronged white blast that merged together and blasted Gaia Dragon hard, leaving nothing left in its wake and sending Yuji's Life Points down to 400.
"That was my strongest monster!" Yuji yelled in shock.
"...You know, Yuji, I had a method of ending this duel a while ago, but you caught me off-guard and I wasn't able to use it," Kono admitted. "But now, after the stunt you pulled last turn, I'm ready to not only beat you, but beat you in such a manner that you'll never want to so much as see my name next to yours on the marquee ever again! I reveal my face-down card: Ring of Destruction!"
"WHAT?!" Yuji demanded, as the ring appeared over Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon and started to crack its body apart slowly. "But that card will destroy your monster, and inflict effect damage to us both! Even you wouldn't survive the blast!"
"Which is why I'm chaining it to this card: Barrel Behind The Door!" Kono went on, revealing his other face-down card to the shock of the crowd. "When I'm about to take effect damage, it negates it, and does the same amount to you!"
Those are the two face-down cards he played at the start of this duel! Yuji realized as the new card absorbed the ring and Blue-Eyes in a flash of light, aiming said light at Yuji. He had this planned right from the beginning!
"Time to end this!" Kono yelled, releasing the mass of energy into a single burst that shot across the field at Yuji. "You're finished, Yuji!"
However, to Kono's shock, as the blast neared closer, Yuji grinned. "Not yet, I'm not!"
Before Kono could question this, Yuji discarded the last card in his hand. At this, a single Fairy appeared on the field, intercepting the blast and opening its tiny mouth, actually CONSUMING the energy. When it was done, it let out a tiny burp before blushing madly and vanishing from the field.
"Wh...What the heck just happened?!" Kono demanded.
"By discarding Hanewata from my hand, I was able to negate all the effect damage I would've taken this turn!" Yuji explained. "So it looks like this duel is still on!"
Kono's jaw looked ready to fall through the stage floor as the crowd erupted, clearly into this. "My Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon's self-destruction was stopped by a little fuzzball?!"
"Sometimes it's the little things in life you treasure most," Yuji replied with a grin. "Now, I believe it's still your move."
Kono growled a little, but nonetheless continued his turn. "Fine, I summon Cave Dragon (2000/100) in attack mode!" Kono slapped a card to his Duel Disk, summoning his bloated green Dragon. "It may not be able to destroy your Aqua Madoor, but good luck getting past it! I end my turn!"
His Cave Dragon's strong, but not strong enough to risk summoning without back-up, in case I summoned a monster with attack higher than 2000...Yuji thought, looking down at his Duel Disk, his eye suddenly catching his Life Point counter. Unless, he WANTS me to summon something strong enough to defeat it! I only have 400 Life Points left, so a careless attack could cost me the duel!
Kono grinned. "Getting nervous, Yuji? Surely you aren't about to back down now!"
Yuji's eyes narrowed. Of course! Kono MUST have a plan to bring back the three Blue-Eyes he banished last turn to wipe me out! If I'm right, then I need to summon a monster strong enough to end this duel right away!
"Okay, my draw!" Yuji yelled, drawing a card and looking it over. This'll be risky, but on the other hand, it COULD give me just the advantage I need, so I have to take the chance!
"I play the Spell Card, Allure of Darkness!" Yuji declared. "Now, I'm allowed to draw two cards, as long as I then banish a DARK monster from my hand, but if I don't have one, then I discard my whole hand!"
Kono chuckled as Yuji drew his two cards. "Well, THAT'S desperate. Besides, what are the odds you'll draw a DARK attribute monster, anyway?"
Yuji took one look at the two cards he drew and grinned. "Apparently, pretty good. I banish my Dark Magician!"
Kono's eyes shot wide open. "WHAT?! But I saw you discard Dark Magician earlier in the game!"
"You saw me discard YUGI'S Dark Magician card," Yuji explained, holding up a card to reveal a light green-skinned magician in blue and red robes. "But I still had my OWN Dark Magician in my deck. And now that he's banished, I get to keep the card I drew, which I'll lay face-down before ending my turn."
"So, in the end, all you could do was try to buy more time?!" Kono roared, pulling a card from his deck. "...Well, it won't save you! I activate Different Dimension Fusion! Now, I pay 2000 Life Points so that we can both summon as many of our banished monsters as we want, and I choose my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons!" The crowd suddenly went wild again as all three Blue-Eyes retook the field in attack mode, roaring at Yuji.
"Then I'll summon my Dark Magician (2500/2100)!" Yuji shot back, summoning his Spellcaster in attack mode as well. "Now, let's see if your three Dragons can defeat him!"
Kono's brow twitched at this. Hold on! Something's wrong here! He KNOWS that even ONE Blue-Eyes White Dragon has enough power to obliterate his Dark Magician and wipe out his Life Points! Why summon Dark Magician in attack mode, then?!
Glancing down at his Duel Disk, Kono caught sight of his Life Points. Of course! He's trying to do what I tried to do last turn and trick me into attacking! That face-down card is a Trap, and since he's using Yugi's deck, I'll bet it's probably Mirror Force! If I attack, he'll blow all my monsters apart, and I'll only have 600 Life Points and an open field next turn!
Kono scoffed. "If you think your amateur attempt to bait me into attacking is going to work, think again! I think I'll go ahead and end my turn! Good luck drawing ANYTHING that can take out my Dragons!"
Yuji sighed. Well, guess it all comes down to this one draw. What is it Yugi used to say? 'Heart of the Cards, guide me'...
Placing a finger to the top of his deck, Yuji felt a sort of warmth over his hand as he pulled it free, as if someone were pulling with him, and glanced at the card, slowly smiling. "...It's a shame, Kono. If you'd attacked on your last turn, you would've won."
"Says you," Kono remarked, pointing to Yuji's face-down. "I know that face-down card is a Trap Card."
"That's true..." Yuji replied, "...but I don't think it's the one you were expecting! I activate Birthright, to Special Summon a monster with no special effects from my graveyard back to the field, and I choose Gaia The Fierce Knight!"
Kono's eyes widened as Gaia returned to the field. "WHAT?! Gaia again?!"
"Gaia was always one of my favourite cards in Yugi's deck, and my faith in him has been rewarded!" Yuji explained, just as a ring of red light enveloped his monsters. "Now, watch as I overlay the Level 7 Gaia The Fierce Knight and Dark Magician! With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon! Come forth, Ebon Illusion Magician (2500/2100)!" The light shot straight up, the spirits of the two monsters becoming orbs of light. Standing in their place on the field was a dark-skinned Spellcaster with long, blonde hair and wearing purple robes.
"Your Ebon Illusion Magician might be powerful, but not powerful enough to take on my Dragons!" Kono roared.
"That's where you're wrong!" Yuji shot back. "I play my last card: Xyz Unit! Now, my Ebon Illusion Magician gains 200 attack times its Rank! Every Xyz Monster has a Rank, and my Ebon Illusion Magician has a Rank of 7, giving it 1400 attack points, for a grand total of 3900!"
"NO!" Kono yelled as Ebon Illusion Magician's staff glowed brightly with power. "This can't be happening!"
"Now, Ebon Illusion Magician, obliterate his Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Yuji ordered, leading to his Spellcaster unleashing a massive blast from his staff at one of Kono's Blue-Eyes, blasting it apart as Kono's Life Points hit 0, much to the mass cheering of the crowd.
"How?" Kono asked, nearly falling to his knees. "How could you have improved so much?"
"Kono..." Yuji said, walking over to his opponent's side of the field and reaching his hand out. "Thank you. That was the best duel I've ever had, and I feel like you helped me to wake up the Duelist in me."
Kono stared blankly at Yuji's hand, then up at his opponent's earnest face, giving a small chuckle. "...Well, just so you know, one day we'll have a rematch, and things will be different."
"I look forward to that," Yuji replied with a smile as Kono took his hand, shaking it as the crowd went wild.
As the two Duelists looked out to the audience of roaring fans, many of whom were chanting their real names instead of those they were posing as, a single figure in the very back of the crowd smiled at the two. Seeing his duty done, he turned away, the wind blowing through his blonde and dark violet locks, and lifting his jacket up like a cape, billowing behind him as he marched slowly away, disappearing into the night...
AUTHOR'S NOTES: So, that's my Yu-Gi-Oh! one shot. I wanted to tell a really quick story that harkened back to the old days of the show but also acknowledged where it and the game that spawned from it have gone since, so I decided on the idea of two Duelists using Yugi and Kaiba's decks that included a bunch of newer cards that have come out since those days. Spell Cards like Dragon's Mirror and the Spellbooks, Xyz Monsters like Ebon Illusion Magician, Tuner Monsters like Hanewata. There's so many ways that the game has changed and grown, that I actually wonder what Yugi and Kaiba's decks would look like now if they remained active characters in the show to this day.
And, in case you're wondering, some of my favourite cards include Marshmallon (who I'd consider my Spirit Partner if I was on GX), Scrap-Iron Scarecrow, and Stardust Dragon. Basically, cards that tick people off to the point of potentially making mistakes. lol Also, my favourite series are, of course, the second series (the first one brought over after "Season Zero"), and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds...Yes, I liked Card Games On Motorcycles. And in case you're wondering, yes, I watched Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged, haven't seen it in a while though, so no spoilers. lol
Anyway, that's it for this one-shot. Lemme know what you think in the comments. Ja né, and may the Heart of the Cards guide you!