Next Generation: Opening Tournament of Shadows
By Cere
Chapter 8: Gears of War
"You know," Tea said as she watched her daughter take her place among the winning duelists, "this could be a problem if too many of our children keep winning. They'll end up facing each other eventually, and we won't know who to root for."
Yugi smiled. "It's a welcome problem." He glanced at his cell phone screen, but there were no new messages. Aura noted his attention with similar worry. Shouldn't they have heard something by now?
This is it, Cliff thought as four faces appeared on the big screen and two rectangles jumped between them. This selection reveals what the final two matches of this round are.
Please don't put me against Flint, James thought. Please don't put me against Flint.
Please put me against James, Flint thought. Please put me against James.
It doesn't matter who I face, Adrian thought grimly. I just have to defeat them.
The selection appeared, and Flint gave a happy hoot. Cliff took a deep breath and stood up. Adrian stood with no regard to his opponent and walked towards the dueling field, pulling his side deck from his pocket. Cliff shrugged and followed him, doing the same. He stopped when Kyra tugged on his sleeve.
"Hey," Kyra whispered, "be careful, okay?"
Cliff raised his eyebrow. "Why?"
Her eyes flicked to Adrian and back. "I think he's the Duelist Hunter."
Cliff looked over and turned back. "Are you serious?"
"Yeah," she whispered. "Just think about it. He dresses like a scary guy, he got back into the tournament when Ellie was attacked, and he was conveniently nearby to suggest the idea."
Cliff thought over it a moment and shook his head. "We can't be sure, but I wonder..." he said. "Anyway, why are you telling me this?"
"Just...just be careful, okay? If you beat him, you might be his next victim."
"What, are you suggesting that I lose to him?" He huffed. "If he is the Hunter, I'm not going to give in to his intimidations."
"Look, just..." She sighed. "Just promise me that you'll be careful. Keep an eye over your shoulder or something."
He sighed. Adrian was standing on the duel field, tapping his foot impatiently. "All right," he said, "thanks for the warning. I'll be careful." He walked towards the duel field, exchanging the cards in his deck.
Michael leaned forward. "Giving him some last minute advice?" he asked.
"Just warning him about Adrian," she replied. "If he wins, he might become the next victim."
Michael shook his head. "There's no way," he said. "He can't use the same trick twice to get back into the tournament. People would get suspicious."
"I'm already suspicious," she replied. "Besides, you've seen what he's like. He may attack merely for payback."
"Well," James said, "it's outside of our hands now."
She huffed and sat back in her seat. "I'm just worried about him, that's all."
"Why?" Michael asked, leaning forward. "You want to make sure that he's in a datable condition after the tournament?"
She sat straight up and turned bright red. "That's not why," she sputtered.
"I dunno," he said, leaning back and nudging James. "It was kind of suspicious when you two arrived alone from the lunch room."
"Yeah," James joined in. "You don't normally take to new people so quickly."
Her eyes darted back and forth between both of them, and finally she turned and faced forward. "I do too," she said. "He's a cool guy, and I bet you'd really like him if you got to know him."
"I'm sure we will," he said with a smirk. He offered James a high five, which he reluctantly accepted. "Seriously, though," he continued, "I don't think there's anything to worry about. If he does win, then he'll stay here in public view. Like I said earlier, that's the safest place to be right now."
I hope so, Kyra thought. Is the safest place really dueling a boy who savagely attacks duelists?
They drew their opening five cards and prepared to duel.
Damon shot straight up in his chair when the doctors walked out of Ellie's room. "Excuse me..." he tried, but they ignored him and talked insistently amongst themselves as they walked down the hall. He turned and hesitantly looked inside the room. A nurse was monitoring some of the equipment hooked up to Ellie. She had a kind face and flowing red hair.
She turned and smiled at him. "It's okay, you can come in," she said. "I'm just finishing some notes, but you won't get in my way."
Damon nodded and stepped into the room. He stood and looked at her, lying expressionless in the bed. Her hair drifted in wandering rivers on the pillow, and her forearm was wrapped under a gauze bandage. He pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down.
"We're very lucky," the nurse said.
He turned to her. "Why do you say that?"
"This is the first time we've been able to treat one of his victims so quickly. We've gathered a lot of information, and we may finally be able to cure her, and the other victims as well."
He turned back to her. "What's wrong with her?"
"Officially, she in an unresponsive state, probably shock-induced."
He pored over the words for a moment. "What does that mean?"
She stood up and walked over to another display screen. "It means that her mind has retreated from the outside world, probably due to some incredible trauma." She picked up her clipboard, dashed down a few notes, and gracefully walked towards the door.
He had one question before she left. "Will she get better?"
She stopped, turned, and smiled at him. "I'm sure of it." She turned to look at her and sighed. "All we can do now, though, is wait. She should make her way back somehow."
His shoulders relaxed a little. "I see," he said. "Thanks, Mom."
She nodded. "Serenity," another nurse called from outside the doorway, "you're needed in room 356 right away."
"I'll be right there," she said, and walked out the door.
Damon looked up at the TV in the corner, where another duel in the tournament was just starting. He sighed and turned back to Ellie.
Cliff drew his sixth card and placed two onto his duel field. "I'll set a card and a monster," he said.
Adrian huffed and drew a card. "Let's start this right," he said. "I summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV4." The silver-plated bird-dragon (1600/1000) stepped onto the field and screeched at its opponent. "Horus, attack his face-down monster." The bird stretched its wings and launched at the enemy monster. Brutal spikes thrust out of the card and knocked the creature back. Adrian winced (A LP: 7400) as the hulking machine (800/2200) rested face-up on the field.
"You attacked my Gear Golem the Moving Fortress," Cliff said. "Not the right way to start a duel."
He chuckled at the barb. "Your turn, then," he said. "Let's see what you can do."
"Gladly," he replied. "I tribute Gear Fortress to summon the Ancient Gear Beast." The crouching robot was replaced by a larger one, this one baring its fangs at Adrian's monster. The creature jumped once and crushed the bird-dragon underneath (A LP: 7000).
Adrian wiped off the blow. "Only a minor setback," he said.
Cliff just slipped another card into his duel gauntlet. "I set a card and end my turn," he said.
"You are a worthy opponent," Adrian said, drawing his card. "I won't hold back. I play Fiend's Sanctuary, a Magic card that gives me a Metal Fiend Token." A string of metal orbs (0/0) slid out of the magic sigil that appeared on Adrian's field.
"To defend himself with?" Kyra asked.
"No," James said, shaking his head. "More likely..."
"I tribute the token to summon Armed Dragon LV5." The small monster was replaced by the red spiked dragon (2400/1700).
Cliff kept his composure. Go ahead, he thought, try to level up your monster by attacking.
"Then I activate Armed Dragon's effect," he said. "By sending Armed Dragon LV7 to the Graveyard, your Ancient Beast is destroyed." Spikes launched from the bulbous dragon's belly, shattering the internal mechanics of the robot dog. "Now, attack directly!"
Cliff froze as the monster's punch slammed into his body (C LP: 5600). Okay, he thought, I'll have to watch out for that. This guy can be unpredictable.
I'll end this quickly, Adrian thought. That will reassert my dominance.
"Then, during my Main Phase 2," Adrian said, "I'll play the Graveyard in the Fourth Dimension. This returns Horus LV4 and Armed Dragon LV7 in my Graveyard back to my deck." He kept his gaze on Cliff as he shuffled. "Then I'll set a card and end my turn."
Cliff drew his card. "I set a monster and end my turn."
"Come on," Kyra said, "fight back!"
"Even you take some time to recover and launch an assault," James said.
Adrian drew his card and ignored it. "Armed Dragon," he said, "attack his monster."
The face-down card flipped to reveal a jar composed of machinery with a single diode eye and a mechanical smile (900/900). "My monster is Cyber Jar," Cliff announced. "First, it destroys all monsters on the field." The jar exploded, sending shrapnel through Adrian's monster.
"Then," Adrian cut in, "we pick up the top five cards of our decks and summon any Level 4 or lower monsters among them." He took the five cards, fanned them, and placed three onto the field. "I Special Summon Mystic Swordsman LV4 and two face-down monsters."
Cliff frowned. "I summon Mechanicalchaser and two face-down monsters as well." The dual-blade wielding warrior (1900/1600) faced off against the robotic orb with jointed arms wielding instruments of pain (1850/800), both flanked by horizontal holographic cards.
Adrian smiled. "It's still my Battle Phase, so Mystic Swordsman will attack Mechanicalchaser." The warrior rushed towards the robot, but Cliff didn't lose his composure.
"I activate Rare Metalmorph," he said. A highly reflective armor descended over the orb (Mechanicalchaser: 2350/800). "This gives my Machine an extra 500 attack points."
"I won't allow that," Adrian replied. "I chain Trap Jammer, which negates and destroys your Trap card." The metallic armor shattered, and the warrior sliced the robot in two (C LP: 5550).
Dang, Cliff thought. I have to keep his monsters from leveling up.
"Main Phase 2," Adrian announced. "I set two cards and end my turn. Mystic Swordsman LV4 evolves to LV6." The swordsman grew to adult height (2300/1700) and split to hold a sword in both hands.
Cliff drew a card. It's okay, he thought, I have a way to combat him. "I'll start by Flip Summoning my Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive." The steaming train engine plowed out of the rotating card. "And when it's flipped, I draw a card." He glanced at his card and nodded. "Then I tribute Dekoichi and Battle Footballer to summon Ancient Gear Golem."
Mystic Swordsman was overshadowed by the large humanoid robot (3000/3000). "And then," Cliff continued, "I activate Ultimate Offering. At the cost of 500 Life Points, I can Normal Summon another time." Essence flowed from his duel gauntlet to the face-up Trap (C LP: 5050). "Come out, Heavy Mech Support Platform."
The support robot (500/500) flew onto the field, separated into different components, and then latched onto the outdated golem (Ancient Golem: 3500/3500). "Heavy Mech Support Platform can become an Equip card on a Machine, raising its stats and also protecting it from destruction once."
"I know what the card does," Adrian snapped. "Just attack already."
Cliff grimaced. "Fine then," he said. "Ancient Golem, attack his leftmost monster."
Adrian titched, but there was no helping it. The card flipped to reveal Sangan (1000/600). At least I'll get to search a monster from my deck, he thought.
Cliff did some quick calculations and then decided that it was time to press his opponent. "During the Damage Step," he said, "I can activate cards that affect the statistics of monsters on the field. So, I'll activate Limiter Removal from my hand."
"What?" Adrian cried.
The wind whipping off of the Golem's fist increased in intensity (Ancient Golem: 7000/3500). "This card doubles the ATK of my Machine monsters, and since Ancient Gear Golem inflicts damage when attacking defensive monsters, it means that you take more damage."
Sangan exploded into scraps of fur and Adrian was pushed back by the backlash (A LP: 600). His face darkened, and he didn't look up at his opponent. "Sangan's effect activates," he said coldly, "and I add Armed Dragon LV3 from my deck to my hand."
"I enter my End Phase," Cliff said. "Limiter Removal's effect destroys all monsters that it boosted, but my Heavy Mech Support Platform's effect protects my Golem from being destroyed." The support gear shattered and the large robot remained strong (Ancient Golem: 6000/3000).
Adrian remained quiet for a minute, trying to regain his composure. Then he looked up with an icy glare. "I will teach you," he said, "the consequences of inflicting damage on me."
Cliff huffed. "Just try," he said. "Are you nothing but talk?"
"Careful," Kyra said. "Don't anger him."
"Okay," Michael said, "he really needs to take this a little less seriously."
"Even I'll agree with you on that one," Flint added.
Adrian touched one of his face-down cards. "Before your turn ends," he said, "I activate The Spell Absorbing Life. All face-down monsters are turned face-up and I gain 400 Life Points for each effect monster on the field." Adrian's face-down card flipped to reveal Dark Mimic LV1, a small treasure chest adorned with eyes and filled with teeth (100/1000). Then his Trap dissolved into glimmering particles that gathered at his Life Points counter (A LP: 1800).
He then picked up a card for the beginning of his turn. "During my Standby Phase, I can send Dark Mimic LV1 to the Graveyard to Special Summon LV3 from my deck." The treasure chest grew bigger and nastier (1000/1000). "Now, when my Dark Mimic falls in battle, I get to draw two cards. Then, I'll move Mystic Swordsman to defense position, set a card, and end my turn."
"Is that his big counterattack?" Flint asked.
"He's preparing," James said. "He's going to draw a lot of cards and probably have enough to launch a counterassault."
Flint scoffed. "Not if he runs out of Life Points. He gained a little bit back, but it's not enough."
"Just watch."
"My turn," Cliff said.
"And my move," Adrian responded. "I activate Spirit Barrier." A thin web of energy appeared between him and his monsters. "Now I don't take any Battle Damage."
Michael sighed. "Good counter."
"Only as long as you control a monster," Cliff reminded. However, this could be a problem. "I summon Gear Golem the Moving Fortress." The heavily-armored mobile behemoth (800/2200) landed in ready position on the field. "Then I play Shield & Sword, swapping the original ATK and DEF of every monster on the field."
Adrian acknowledged the change with little interest (Mystic Swordsman LV6: 1700/2300) (Dark Mimic LV3: 1000/1000) (Ancient Golem: 6000/3000) (Gear Fortress: 2200/800). "Now," Cliff announced, "Gear Fortress will attack the Dark Mimic." A spiked assault crushed the chest, but Adrian just drew two more cards. "And then Ancient Golem destroys your Swordsman."
Adrian's expression was just as emotionless as the warrior was defeated. "I activate my face-down card, LV Degradation. This revives Mystic Swordsman LV4 from my Graveyard."
Cliff nodded. "I'll end by setting one card. Your turn."
Adrian pulled a seventh card for his hand and then smiled. Cliff braced himself. "I play," Adrian said, "Book of Moon, changing one of your monsters to face-down defense position."
Cliff bit his lip as his Ancient Golem disappeared under a holographic card. This could be bad, he thought.
"And then I summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV4," he continued. "Mystic Swordsman, attack his Ancient Gear Golem. Due to his effect, when he attacks a face-down monster, that monster is automatically destroyed." The swordsman swept his sword in an arc, causing Cliff's card to shatter into pieces. "And then Horus attacks your other Gear Golem." The fortress swung a few times, but the bird-dragon was victorious (C LP: 4250). "And then I end my turn," he said, "which means that my Horus Dragon evolves to LV6."
Cliff looked unpleasantly at the larger metallic bird (2300/1600). A monster immune to Magic cards, eh? he thought as he drew a card. This might turn things around. "I play Pot of Greed," he said. He drew two more cards and nodded. "Then I activate my face-down Trap, Stronghold the Moving Fortress. This is a Continuous Trap card that becomes a monster when activated." The Trap card slid onto the field and a large mechanical being rose out of it (0/2000).
"Then I'll use Stronghold as a tribute to summon the Ancient Gear Beast, which I'll then equip with Construction Material." The rusting dog (2000/2000) squeaked a bark, and a thin yellow rope tied it to the holographic Magic card behind it. Adrian tried to inconspicuously read what the card did. "When the equipped Machine destroys a monster in battle," Cliff pointed out, "I can add a Machine from my deck to my hand with an ATK less than the ATK of the destroyed monster. So Ancient Beast, attack his Mystic Swordsman."
The dog leapt and bit through its opponent. The web in front of Adrian protected him from the shock waves. Cliff pulled his deck from his gauntlet and searched for a particular card. "I choose to fetch Heavy Mech Support Platform with Construction Material's effect," he said. "Then I activate the effect of my Ultimate Offering to summon it." Another group of support parts (500/500) flew onto the field (C LP: 3750) and then split apart to attach to the Beast (Ancient Beast: 2500/2500).
"Not a bad move," Adrian said, drawing a card, "but it will be for nothing. I play Level Up, increasing my Horus to LV8!" Arms unfolded from the bird-dragon's chest and it grew to tower over the field (3000/1800). A bead of sweat ran down Cliff's neck. "I'll also summon Armed Dragon LV3. Horus, attack Gear Beast!"
The bird opened its mouth and bellowed out blue flames. They wrapped around the ancient dog and flew through Cliff's body (C LP: 3250), but only the support mechanics were destroyed by the attack (Ancient Beast: 2000/2000). "Your turn."
Cliff quickly assessed his position on the field. Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 would negate all of his Magic cards, but it didn't matter because he didn't have any in his hand. Adrian had left a weaker monster on the field, one that would upgrade into a better version during the next turn. However, attacking it wouldn't damage his opponent's Life Points at all, not while Spirit Barrier was still on the field. Plus, it would leave his own Life Points vulnerable. He drew a card and saw that it might help his situation, but he needed to hold out for another turn.
"My turn," he said. "I switch Ancient Gear Beast to defense position, set a monster, and set two cards." My hand is empty now, he thought as Adrian drew a card, but I should be able to bounce back.
"First, Armed Dragon evolves," Adrian said. The plucky little dragon grew to LV5 (2400/1700). "Then, Horus LV8 will wipe out Gear Beast, and Armed Dragon will attack your face-down monster." The dog robot shattered under the flames this time, and Cliff's other card flipped to reveal Dekoichi (1400/1000). The locomotive broke under the punch, but Cliff drew another card.
No Trap, eh? Adrian thought. "I'll also set a monster and a card," he said. "Then I end my turn, and LV5 can be sent to the Graveyard to summon LV7 from my hand." The dragon grew to its impressive adult height (2800/1000).
Cliff looked strong in the face of two fully evolved monsters. "It's time to activate my Trap," Cliff said. "It's a Continuous Trap called Labyrinth of Nightmare." Ethereal ghost skulls drifted out of the Trap card and circled the field. Both of Adrian's monsters crouched down and defended themselves.
"What's going on here?" Adrian asked.
"The effect of my Trap card," Cliff explained, "changes the battle position of every face-up monster during that player's End Phase. So, your monsters are now in defense position."
Crap, Adrian thought. Now my monsters are vulnerable.
"I'll draw," Cliff said. He smiled when he saw what card he had drawn. "I activate my other Trap card, Gorgon's Eye. The effects of all defense position monsters on the field are negated. That doesn't mean much for your Armed Dragon, but now Horus is prevented from negating Magic cards this turn."
An eye surrounded by snake heads rose out of the Trap card. The eye opened and shone a bright light, freezing all of Adrian's monsters on the field. "And then, since your Horus can no longer negate it, I play the Magic card Courage in the Face of Defeat."
The duelists' jaws dropped open in amazement. Even Adrian's eyes shot open in greed. "Wait," Kyra said, "did he really just say 'Courage in the Face of Defeat'?"
"What are you guys gawking about?" Flint asked.
"It's one of the rarest cards," James said. "Only a few copies of the promotional card were released as tournament prizes back in the waning days of Duel Monsters. They haven't even re-released it yet."
"How did you get your hands on that?" Adrian asked.
"You'd be surprised how much this card was worth five years ago," Cliff said. "My dad found it on one of his business trips and bought it. The folks at Kaiba Corporation were kind enough to let me laminate it and use it, even though it hadn't been re-released."
Tea saw a familiar look in Yugi's eye. "You wouldn't," she said.
He shrugged. "It depends on how much he'd sell it for. I'm sure not selling my own personal copy."
"Anyway," Cliff said, "Courage in the Face of Defeat lets me draw a card for each monster on your side of the field. So I draw three cards." He pulled them and smiled. "I then summon the Trojan Horse, a monster that counts as two tributes when tributed for an Earth monster. So, I use the effect of Ultimate Offering to tribute Trojan Horse to summon Ancient Gear Golem." The large wooden horse (1600/1200) vanished (C LP: 2750) and was replaced by the familiar large automaton (3000/3000). "Then I activate Ultimate Offering's effect again to summon Gear Golem the Moving Fortress."
"How many of those do you have in your deck?" Adrian asked in frustration as the third spiked robot (800/2200) appeared on the field (C LP: 2250).
Cliff ignored the comment. "Then I activate Gear Fortress's ability. By paying 800 Life Points, it can attack you directly during this turn."
"He sure plays fast and loose with his Life Points," Michael commented (C LP: 1450).
"But he meters it well," James said. "It could be enough to win him this duel."
Come on, Cliff, Kyra thought. I want you to win, but I don't want you to be attacked.
"Ancient Gear Golem," Cliff announced, "attack Horus." The robot drew back its fist and swung it at the bird-dragon.
"Oh, go ahead and activate it already," Adrian said bitterly.
"Fine," he said with a smile. "In response to Ancient Golem's attack, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Spirit Barrier." The winds tore through Adrian's energy web and scattered it.
"That's impressive," James said.
"What?" Kyra asked.
"He knows how to use the Golem's effect of preventing the opponent from reacting to an attack. He waits until the attack is underway to disrupt the opponent's plans."
The Golem's fist plowed through Horus and headed for Adrian. Without flinching, he slid a card from his hand to the Graveyard. "I may not be able to activate Magic or Trap cards," he said, "but I can still activate monster effects. I discard Kuriboh to negate all battle damage from this attack." An army of brown furballs took the brunt of the machine's attack.
Cliff frowned slightly at the setback. "Gear Fortress, attack directly." Adrian had no defense for the second attack (A LP: 1000), but he was still in the game. Next turn, Cliff thought. "I end my turn, and Labyrinth of Nightmare switches my monsters to defense position."
How annoying, Adrian thought. Your Golem is equally strong in defense position, and your Moving Fortress is even stronger. He drew a card and moved his hand to the defense monster on the field. "I Flip Summon Dark Mimic LV1," he said. The holographic rotated for another evil treasure chest (100/1000). "Its Flip Effect lets me draw one card." He drew it and smiled. "Then I tribute Dark Mimic for Horus LV6."
Again? Cliff thought. The silver bird-dragon (2300/1600) took its place next to the spiked dragon. "Horus Dragon, attack his Moving Fortress." The dragon reduced the opposing monster to scrap. "Then, during the End Phase of my turn, I send Horus LV6 to the Graveyard to Special Summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 from my deck, after your Labyrinth resolves."
The fully evolved ancient bird-dragon (3000/1800) spread its wings as Armed Dragon moved back to attack position. This isn't good, Cliff thought. We may be at an impasse. He can't defeat my Ancient Golem, and I can't attack his Horus without leaving myself vulnerable. Plus, until I can get rid of it, all of my Magic cards are useless. I may have to use different tactics to win this.
He drew a card and scrunched his mouth in thought. "I set a card and move Ancient Gear Golem to attack position. Ancient Golem, attack Armed Dragon." A single punch obliterated Horus's partner (A LP: 800). Cliff nodded, and the Golem switched back to defense position.
Adrian's hand moved to his deck. His heartbeat quickened, and he felt the beginning of flutters in his stomach. I can't let this happen, he thought. If he wins, there's no way I'll be able to get back into the tournament the same way. He turned to his hand. I have the card to beat him, but I need to get his Golem out of defense position.
He drew a card. Not the card I need. "I move Horus to defense position," he said. "so that it moves back to attack position at the end of my turn. Your move."
Cliff drew a card. Perfect, he thought, if only it wasn't a Magic card. "Your turn."
Adrian took a card from his deck. The card trembled in his hand. It was exactly what he needed. Stop it, he told himself. I am on the verge of winning. There's no reason to get nervous now.
"My turn," he exclaimed, fighting the nerves in his voice. "I play Enemy Controller, choosing its first effect to change your Ancient Gear to attack position."
What are you playing at? Cliff wondered as his robot shifted out of its crouch. Are you so willing to wipe out both of our monsters?
"Then," Adrian continued, "I play the Magic card Explosive Remains. During this turn, whenever a monster on your side of the field is destroyed in battle, you take damage equal to half of that monster's attack strength."
Interesting, Cliff thought. So that's how you break the impasse.
"So," Adrian continued, "even though our monsters tie, you will still take lethal damage. Horus Dragon LV8, attack Ancient Gear Golem!"
The bird-dragon opened its mouth and azure flames erupted from it, heading in a stream towards the opposing robot. It raised its fist and plowed against the stream of flames, fighting against it.
Cliff smiled and touched his face-down card. "I activate my Trap card," he said, "Rare Metalmorph."
No, Adrian thought. The Golem's armor changed, became shiny and new for the first time in thousands of years (Ancient Golem: 3500/3000).
"As you remember from before, it becomes an Equip card that gives the equipped monster an attack boost," he continued, "which makes your Magic card useless."
The newly empowered monster powered through the flames and hit Horus directly in the face. Adrian looked on in shock as his monster fell behind him (A LP: 300). He staggered backwards, powerless against the threat before him. His mind raced, but it could come up with no answer.
"My turn," Cliff said. "Ancient Golem, attack directly."
The force of the blow knocked Adrian to the ground (A LP: 0). The wake from the attack blew around the field, making Cliff's vest jacket flutter. Adrian sat on the ground, his eyes wide open. "You..." he muttered.
"Adrian gambled and lost," Kenn said. "The victor in this duel is Cliff Clayton!"
"Nice duel," Cliff said, "but not good enough."
Adrian narrowed his eyes and stood up gruffly. With just a sharp glance at him, he turned and stormed off the field. The other duelists were silent as he walked past. "Tough luck," Flint said, but he got no response. "Ah, jerk."
Cliff walked over amid the cheers and sat down. "Good job," Kyra said. "Just...remember what I said earlier."
He smiled. "Of course."
"Well," Flint said, standing and stretching his arms over his head, "it's time." He turned and smiled evilly at James. "Can't put it off any longer, James."
James sighed and stood up. "Let's do this." He held up his duel gauntlet and readied it.
to be continued...
Here, for your reference, is the "official" card text of my original cards in this chapter:
LV Degradation (Trap) Activate only when 1 "LV" monster is destroyed and sent to your Graveyard. Special Summon from your Graveyard 1 monster that has the destroyed monster's card name in its card text.
Construction Material (Equip Magic) Equip only to a Machine-Type monster. When the equipped monster destroys a monster by battle, you can select 1 Machine-Type monster in your Deck with an ATK lower than the destroyed monster's ATK and add it to your hand. Then shuffle your Deck.
Courage in the Face of Defeat (Magic) Draw 1 card for each monster your opponent controls.
Explosive Remains (Magic) During the turn this card is activated, each time 1 monster on your opponent's side of the field is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, inflict damage to your opponent equal to half of the destroyed monster's ATK.
