Author's Notes:

Here's the duel! It's long, extreme, and detailed.

Reminders: Thoughts are in Italics, Brackets indicate setting

For this section of the duel the following setup is used when an attack is announced (Monster #1 [ ? ATK] vs Monster #2 [ ? ATK]) - it makes more sense in the duel so Read!

Okay no more spoilers...

Disclaimer in Ch. 1


[Heartland Park- Yuma and Jaden]

Duel Progress:

Jaden: 3100 LP

Yuma: 1600 LP

Jaden stood in a cloud of smoke. When it cleared, he found a zigzagging opening in the ground where Flame Wingman once stood. "Not bad!" he yelled toward Yuma.

Yuma was about to accept the compliment when two crashing figures appeared from the thick hedgerow.

"Yuma!" cried the girl.

"Jaden! So this is where you ran off to!" said the other new arrival.

Yuma easily recognized Kotori but didn't recognize the guy she was with. There was a small thought in the back of his mind that told him that he had seen the figure before.

Jaden piped up, "Hey Yusei! Did you find the parts?"

Yusei? thought Yuma. There was another famous duelist with that name. But Yusei Fudo shouldn't know Jaden Yuki. He was an expert riding duelist from another time.

"Finding the parts was easier than finding you," said Yusei. "Since it doesn't look like anything important is going on here, we need to head back."

"You've got it all wrong pal," Jaden retaliated. "Here! Use this souvenir I got you and take a look!" Jaden picked through his pocket until he found a small parcel. He threw it toward Yusei.

The traveling partner caught the gift and inspected it. It was a D-Gazer. The frame was steel gray and the lens was the same blue as Yusei's coat.

"Hope you like it the color!" Jaden remarked. "Now can we duel a little longer, pretty please?"

Yusei set his new D-Gazer and observed the field. The kid Jaden was fighting had a large white and gold warrior monster while Jaden had nothing except a facedown. His instincts told Yusei that the duel was nearing its climax. "Alright Jaden, you can finish but from the looks of things you're going to have to rev it up!"

"Epic! Thanks a ton Yusei!" Jaden jumped back into the duel. "I guess it's time for me to really get my game on."

"I'll set one card face down and end my turn!" announced Yuma.

"My draw then!" yelled Jaden. "First, it's time for a little change of scenery! I play the spell card Neo Space!" As Jaden set the card the augment reality changed the entire park landscape into a hazy but star-studded universe. "And now I activate the magic card Ancient Rules. This allows me to special summon a Level 5 or higher monster from my hand. Common out, master of Neo Space and protector the planets, Elemental Hero Neos!"

Jaden's ace appeared on the field in a flashy Super Man style entrance. He touched down facing Hope.

"It's really Neos!" exclaimed Yuma.

"Protector of planets and master of space," repeated Astral.

"With the field set in Neo Space, Neos gets a 500 attack point bonus. Now, use all your might Neos! Attack Kibou Ou Hope!" yelled Jaden.

(Elemental Hero Neos [3000 ATK] vs Kibou Ou Hope [2500 ATK])

Neos took off from its position and aimed for Hope.

"Not so fast! By removing one of Hope's overlay units I can negate Neos's attack!" With that said, Yuma removed Gagaga Magician from under Hope's card. The armored warrior absorbed one of the glowing overlay spheres and produced a mighty scaled shield. "Moon Barrier!"

Neos collided with the shield but refused to pull back for a couple moments. Finally, he was forced back to Jaden's side of the field. The Neo Space hero looked back at Jaden apologetically.

"No problem Neos!" Jaden looked at his hand again. "I'm throwing down a facedown!" When the card appeared on the field, he addressed Yuma, "I guess that makes it your turn!"

Yuma looked up at Astral. Continuing to have Neos out on the field is going to lead to big trouble, thought Yuma.

I agree. Answered Astral. You've shown me numerous times that offense may be the best defense. If we can rid his field of Neos we might stand a chance in a later turn. There is a risk though. Jaden's bond with his deck and his strategic use of facedown cards give him more control over this duel than us.

You're making this sound impossible! But if there's hope in attacking, then that's what I'm going to do. "My draw!" shouted Yuma. "Alright, I set one card facedown and order Hope to attack Elemental Hero Neos!"

"That's too reckless Yuma!" yelled Kotori from the sideline.

"Not when I play the Trap Card, Giant Shadow of Egoism!" answered Yuma. "With this, Hope gains 1000 extra attack points until the end of the battle phase. Now go! Hope King Slash!"

(Kibou Ou Hope [3500 ATK] vs Elemental Hero Neos [3000 ATK])

Jaden smirked, "Nice try but no good hero leaves home without his shield! Activate trap card, Hero Barrier!"

A spinning shield appeared in front of Neos, completely halting Hope's sword.

"And that's not all," replied Jaden "because it's your battle phase I can activate the Trap Card, Ultimate Offering! By paying 800 life points I can summon out Neo Spacian Dark Panther to join Neos."

Jaden: 2300 LP

Yuma: 1600 LP

A large cape-wearing black cat pounced onto the field and landed beside Neos. The two exchanged friendly nods before facing Hope.

A cat? thought Yuma. "At the end of the battle phase, Shadow of Egoism wears off. I set one card and end my turn!"

"Alright Yuma, it's been a great duel so far," replied Jaden. "As a reward I'll show you my heroes' ultimate teamwork. Now, Neo-Spacian Dark Panther and Elemental Hero Neos, contact fusion!"

"Contact fusion?" asked Kotori.

"Yes, it's a special fusion technique used by Jaden's Neo-Spacians. He doesn't need a polymerization spell card to activate it," answered Yusei.

Jaden interrupted the lesson by brining his new comrade out onto the field. "Appear now, Elemental Hero Dark Neos!"

The dark-winged hero touched down on the field, claws at the ready.

"Dark Neos still receives the attack bonus from the Neo Space field spell and at the end of my turn, he isn't sent back to my extra deck. Let's try this attack again! Dark Neos attack Kibou Ou Hope!" yelled Jaden.

The fusion warrior pounced upward from its spot and flew toward Hope. The monster's speed and aerodynamics increased thanks to the space cat's influence.

(Elemental Hero Dark Neos [3000 ATK] vs Kibou Ou Hope [2500 ATK])

Yuma stood ready to intercept the attack. "Hope's effect isn't limited to one go Jaden! I activate Hope's ability once again to negate your attack!" To Yuma's surprise Hope's last overlay unit remained in orbit around the Xyz monster. "What's going on?" asked Yuma.

"It's Dark Neos," replied Astral. "It seems the benefits of that contact fusion included one that could negate Hope's effect."

Jaden stood strong on his end of the field. "That's correct, now Dark Neos keep going with your attack!"

Finally, the two monsters collided and created a massive explosion. When the dust cleared both stood on their respective squares of Neo Space.

Jaden: 2300 LP

Yuma: 1100 LP

"Hope still stands," said Yubel. "It appears we've overlooked something."

Astral answered her, "Numbers are special cards even among Xyz monsters. The only way to destroy a Numbers is with another Numbers. However, the duelist with the Number is not invincible to damage calculation."

"Wait," replied Yuma, "If Dark Panther negated Hope's effect then why wasn't Hope's number status also negated." Yuma was reflecting on a previous duel against his friend Shark. Shark's Xyz monster, Black Ray Lancer, had a similar effect but was also able to negate the Number's inability to be destroyed in battle.

Jaden took a close look at his Dark Neos card to confirm an answer. "Well, Dark Neos ability is to negate an opposing monster's effect, not effects. Guess that means I'm stuck only negating Hope's Moon Barrier."

The thoughts of the peanut gallery were identical, Specific effect much?

"One more facedown for me," called Jaden. He set his card and looked toward Yuma, "My turn's done!"

"My draw then! Kattobingu daze, Ore!" yelled Yuma. His spirit rewarded him with a spell to match Hope against Dark Neos once more. He could see Astral over his shoulder. The spirit confirmed the card choice. They were both ready to tackle Jaden and Neos. "I activate the spell card, Blustering Winds! This card gives Hope another 1000 attack and defense point boost that's good until my next standby phase. It's enough to take Neos off the field and do some damage!"

The wind cloaked Hope in a swirling armor and the Xyz warrior grew in size. At the end of the growth spurt, it gave a mighty "Hope" battle cry.

Yuma and Astral called out in unison, "Now, Kibou Ou Hope confront Elemental Hero Dark Neos! Hope King Slash!"

Jaden smiled through all the attack preparation and watch as Hope lifted off for the battle. He watched as, instead of waiting for Hope's approach, Dark Neos pounced up from its position to meet Hope in the air. Time for my facedown, thought Jaden. "Sorry Yuma," he announced, "But I can't let Neos go it alone. I activate the Trap Card, Soul Union."

The duelists and spectators watched as the graveyard slot on Jaden's duel disk started to glow red and green. Out of it, flew the silhouette of Elemental Hero Flame Wingman.

The semi-transparent monster flew up to meet Dark Neos. When they met, Flame Wingman disappeared, leaving a red and green pulsating aura around Dark Neos.

As the others watched in awe, Jaden began explaining, "Soul Union is the ultimate teamwork between heroes! It allows me select one Elemental Hero in my graveyard and one Elemental Hero on my field. Then, the attack points of the Hero on my field increase by the attack points of the Hero from my graveyard. Elemental Hero Flame Wingman lends his attack power to Elemental Hero Dark Neos."

(Kibou Ou Hope [3500 ATK] vs Elemental Hero Dark Neos [5100 ATK])

The two remaining monsters confronted each other above the field. Sword met claw and sparks flew. Clouds from the surrounding Neo Space converged on the two monsters, completely engulfing them and hiding them from sight. A mass of swirling clouds and energy remained. Small rotating arms formed from the clouds such that the overall structure resembled a small galaxy.

A large pulsating wave erupted from the center of the spiral and traveled outward in all directions. It hit both duelists and spectators with a powerful force, sending everyone flying backwards no less than a foot or two.

The buzzer sounded, reminding them all that Jaden's counter had succeeded.

Jaden: 2300 LP

Yuma: 0 LP

The customary winner's picture was displayed in the center of the field and the Neo Space field retreated to reveal an undamaged park and statuary garden.

Jaden stood up on this end and watched as all the others did the same. What he saw surprised him.

Dark Neos and Hope faced each other on the field. For a few extra seconds, the two stood boldly before the augmented reality program devirtualized them both.


Authors Notes:

That was one long chapter- by my standards

'Hope' you enjoyed it!

BUT there's more to this story so stick around.