CHAPTER 9

Gould sat down at his office, and turned to his four visitors. Rossler sat next to the wall, apparently ignoring his colleagues. Van Dunkan, Lloyd and Deborah each had their distance from each other, exchanging sharp looks. Gould sighed. Another tournament, another dispute. I'm getting too old for this.

"Gentlemen…and lady, we now have a team. They were selected by their competence alone, so there's only one thing left to do: select a reserve."

All four noted in approval. Gould took a deep breath.

"Then there's only one thing left to do: decide who's the fourth."

"Well, if talent's your choice sir, we should go with Koji" said Deborah. "Not only did he come short of 3% of perfect, but he has one of the most effective strategies I've seen in years."

"And you think that proves anything?! Anyone can put a deck together. It takes spirit to win a duel, not just maths!"

"Big words, last time I checked, the Ra representative lost us the cup lat time!"

"Why you…" snarled Van Dunkan.

Gould hit the desk with his fist, breaking up the quarrel. All four persons turned to him.

"I won't have such behavior in my office, especially from a teacher! Now, since it's obvious that we're going nowhere fast, I say we let our team coordinator decide. So what do you say Cassius?"

Rossler smirked, not bothering to move his back from the wall.

"I say we go with Koji as well."

"I knew it!" shouted Deborah extatickly,

"BUT" added Rossler, cutting her short, we need to see his value. After all, he did loose the first time."

"And how do you intend to do that?!"

"With a duel, of course. But since there are no viable options in Ra Yellow at the moment, I think we need to go look elsewhere."

He turned to Lloyd, his dark eyes almost piercing the former soldier.

"What do you say, do you think you have someone who can take him on?!"

"I do." he said, giving the same cold smile.

"Then it's settled. Lloyd, I'll expect you to find the duelist of your choice by this afternoon. The duel will be held at the athletics field."

"Fair enough" said both men, leaving the room.

0 0 0 0 0 0

In the Slifer common room, Jason and Oliver were engaged in a table duel. The taller boy had Colossal Fighter in play, along with Command Knight and a face-down. Oliver had Power Tool Dragon combined with Reflective Shield, and Power Pickaxe. He also had a face-down.

"Not the best situation to be in, right? If you attack, Reflective shield will deal you 3600 damage. And that's not something you can afford right mow!"

"Well, then I…shoot, I guess I just have to pass!"

"Then it's my move! So I activate…"

The overhead loudspeakers beeped, and Lloyd's voice echoed in the main room.

"Jason and Oliver, to my office now!"

Oliver groaned, and began to collect his cards.

"Of all the freakin' times! Just when I'm about to win."

"Well, looks like lady luck has a thing going for me today." chuckled Jason.

The two boys went up to the second floor. Oliver had been there before, so he knew the way. The door to the office was opened, so they entered. Jason was taken aback by the military theme of the decoration. Lloyd pointed them to the couch.

"Boys, as you know, three members of the team have been chosen. However, the rules demand that we have a backup, in the case one of the main players is incapacitated. Normally, this choice is made by the board of teachers, but this time, an exception has been made".

"How exactly? I thought the team choose the reserve!" asked Jason.

"Looks like somebody's been doing his homework for a change" laughed Lloyd. "Yes, that would be the case, but this time, the team coordinator has decided to make the decision more, shall we say, sportly. Two candidates have been selected, and they will duel today. The winner becomes the fourth member of the team."

Oliver and Jason exchanged a quick look, then turned to their homeroom teacher.

"And…who were selected?"

"Well, the first is from Obelisk Blue. He got an excellent mark at the exam, so it was an easy choice!"

"And the second?"

"The second was my choice! I may be in charge of the reds, but I still have some decision power. So I decided to give one of my own students to take the shot."

"One of us? Who?!"

Lloyd got up, and walked to Oliver. The boy felt like a bucket of coldwater had fallen on him. He dared not get his hopes up, but at the same time, he wanted it to be true.

"M…me?"

"Yes, you."

Oliver jumped up from his seat, shocked and amazed.

"B…but why? I was right at the bottom of the exam, I didn't even get good marks from the beginning of the semester, and…"

Lloyd cut him short.

"You remember that little talk we had some time back?"

"I guess…"

"Then can you tell me what were my words?"

Oliver shut his eyes, trying hard to remember.

"You said that I had sacrificed something to survive."

"And can you tell me what you sacrificed?"

"I just don't know sir!"

"Come on, can it be more obvious? You sacrificed your weakness. I told you, you can become someone, if only you can let go of the idea that you're too weak."

"But I AM weak!"

"And you will be. Unless you get it out of your head!"

The man turned around, and walked to his desk. Opening one of the drawers, he picked up a card, and handed it to him.

"Here, you're going to need this."

Oliver took the card, and read the text. Not bad, I can sure use this.

"I thought it would go well with your deck theme."

"Thank you sir, but…"

"The duel starts today, at 5 PM, in the athletic field. Be sure to be there!"

"Guess that concludes the debate" said Jason, as Oliver staggered out the door.

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The hours seemed to pass like lightning, or as slow as a slug. In their room, the floor was covered by cards, as Oliver and Jason tried to decide what cards to use for the coming duel. Oliver picked up three cards, rubbing his chin. Okay, Nitro Unit, Prevention Star, or Megamorph. What to use? Oh, this is just not fair!

"Jason, I don't think I can do this."

"Come on, you gave me all that talk about wanting to compete, and now you say that you don't have what it takes?"

"Well, that was different."

"And how is that? It's a duel. You won before, and you can win now!"

Jason took his own deck case, and scrolled trough it. He took out two cards, and handed them to Oliver. The blonde haired duelist took them, and began to read them, amazed.

"Whoa! Why would you give me these?!"

"I'm not giving them, they're a loan. And I think you can sure use it. Summoning from the deck is always good."

He felt overwhelmed. For the first time, he felt that he had friends to back him up. People who didn't think he was weak, nor that he was powerless. Placing the cards in his deck, he fastened his duel disk, and loaded the deck. Jason checked the watch.

"We better get going. Duel starts in twenty minutes."

Oliver took a deep breath. Here we go! No screwing up now.

***

Duel Academy had quite an impressive sports center. This included an indoor hall, a running field, sauna and swimming pool. Many students had gathered on the running track, most from Obelisk and Slifer. Lloyd and Deborah were seated in the main audience tribune, and Gould had mingled among the students. As the two boys made their way, they were greeted by cheers and boos, depending on the coloring of the blazers.

"Hey shortie, the playground's that way!"

"Better watch your back! Smaller bugs than you were squashed here!"

Oliver began to feel small and insecure again. Despite the fact that some cheered for him, the sheer hostility of the opposite dorm made him cower.

"Don't worry, they just hunger for entertainment. Once you win, they cheer for you." said Andora, making her way trough the crowd.

"Nice to see that someone's for me! I'm surprised you don't support your representative."

"I can support who I want. And if my friend is from the opposition, then too bad for him."

"So who's Oliver dueling?" asked Jason.

"I don't know, but he's bound to be someone good."

A small group of people, mostly girls, entered the stadium, with an athletic Japanese boy in their midst. The Obelisk students cheered and clapped as they walked towards them. Andora shook her head in shock, and Oliver took a step back.

"God, please don't tell me I'm dueling him!"

Koji stopped, surrounded by his fangirls. His gaze stopped on Andora first, then moved to Jason, and lastly Oliver.

"Fancy meeting you here. Guess the last defeat wasn't enough!"

"Don't flatter yourself. Just because I couldn't win, who says that I can't do it! And judging by Tom Thumb here, I say it won't be much of a challenge!" he said, pointing to Oliver.

"Care to say that again?!" shouted Jason, trying to hold himself back.

"So is that's how it is? Then here's a wake-up call: I have a deck, and that makes us on the same footing".

Koji's lips became as sharp as a dagger.

"Having some worthless pieces of paper doesn't raise you to my level."

"Boy, you really are a ton of joy, aren't you?!" retorted Andora disgusted.

The Japanese boy didn't answer. He walked to the center of the field, and raised his duel disk in defiance. Oliver turned to his friends. Jason nodded in approval, and Andora gave him a thumbs up.

"Take him down!" said Jason quietly.

Oliver smiled, and walked onto the green, in the cheers of the Slifer Red students.

"Good to see you decided to duel. I can use the training!"

"Good, I was thinking the same thing!" replied Oliver.

Koji took out a card, and showed it to him.

"See this? It may have failed on it's first run, but not this time. And once I win, I'm going to humiliate you so bad, you'll be thankful to be so short!"

Oliver didn't bother to answer, and just activated his own duel disk.

Oliver 8000 – Koji 8000

"I think you can use a head start, so why don't you take the first turn."

"Don't mind if I do! So I summon Morhptronic Boomboxe."

The stereo shaped robot rose up, letting out a strong, rhythmic sound (1200/400).

"I place two face-downs. That should do."

"Normally I love techno music, but this time I'll make an exception! So I begin with this: Machina Armored Unit."

Ho boy, that's definitely NOT good!

"Switched decks after just one duel Koji?" laughed Andora from the sides.

"You wish. Just because a card is named after an archetype, it doesn't mean that it only supports that archetype, right? This is a general Machine support card."

"Next up, I set a card. Then, I summon this: Tech Genus Laser Ogre-LG 100!"

A creature resembling a demon emerged. It wore a white lab coat, sharply contrasting it's green skin. It's felt arm was mechanic, resembling a cannon (1700/600).

"And now for it's effect: all I need to do is destroy a card I control, and you take 1000 damage. So I offer my face-down."

The hidden card vanished, and the ogre launched a beam of plasma, striking Oliver. It took all his might not to fall back.

"And since the card I just destroyed is Tech Reach, I can add any Machine from my deck to my hand, as long as it has 1000 ATK or less!"

"Is that bad?" asked Jason from the side.

"Big time." replied Andora. "It's the same move he used on me. And I have a feeling I know what he took."

"Time to scrap your sound stereo! Ogre, attack!"

The fiendish machine launched a bright green beam from it's cannon, aiming for the Morphtronic machine.

"Activate Morphtransition! So your attack is negated, and Boomboxen changes to defense mode".

"Guess it's true: kids just love their toys! So I'll just set a card and pass."

Oliver7000– Koji 8000

"Say what you want about my "toys", but here's what they can do for you! I summon Morphtronic Radion. And with him in play, Morphtronic monsters gain 800 ATK! And to wrap things up, I play the spell Machine Assembly Line, giving my monsters an additional 200 ATK."

Another machine emerged, resembling a robotic MP3 player (1000/900), (1800/900). Boomboxen stood up, in attack mode (2000/200).

"And guess what, he can also attack twice each turn! So your life points are in some serious trouble! Boomboxen, attack."

The boxes let out a lout, earshattering sound, making the demonic Ogre explode.

"Hardly worth the trouble. Since you destroyed my monster, I can add another copy of it from my deck to my hand. And also the effect of Machina Armored Unit activates, allowing me to summon a Machine from my deck to the field, as long as it has the same attribute and less ATK than the one you just destroyed. So come out, Tech Genus Gardna GD-100."

Andora hadn't seen the monster summoned during her own duel, and was just as surprised as Oliver. It resembled an assembly of rocks and metallic components, strung together with electric bindings (100/1800). "Well, now I know what that card does" thought Oliver.

"Attack if you want! My deck can supply me with an endless stream of machines. Destroy one, and all you do is give me another!"

"Fine then, here comes my second attack! Boomboxen…"

"I'd say you better think again! I activate Phantom Destruction, allowing me to flip Radion face-down, thus depriving you of the much needed ATK bonus. And since you already called your attack, you'll take some damage as well!"

The rocky monster struck the machine with it's fist, blocking the attack. Oliver closed his eyes, angry not so much against his opponent as much against himself.

"I have to end my turn now!" said the blonde boy.

"And end you shall! I offer my Gardna to summon Tech Genus Destroyer NV-008. And now that my Gardna's in my graveyard, all Tech Genus monsters gain 300 ATK and DEF."

The rocky creature vanished, replaced by a tall, humanoid creature. It wore a golden armor, and had only one eye, replacing it's whole face. It carried a large assault rifle (2000/1000), (2300/1300).

"Your monsters are done! Strike down Boomboxen!"

The machine fired a beam of plasma, dissolving it's target. It then turned to the face-down, and fired again.

"What the…"

"My Destroyer has quite a powerful effect: if it destroys a monster by battle, I can destroy a face-down monster on your side of the field, and deal 500 damage to you!"

"Well, I gain something as well. Each time a Machine I control is destroyed, my Machine Assembly Line gains 2 Junk Counters for each one. As for what they are for, that's my secret for now."

"I place a face-down. Make your next turn!"

Oliver 4800 – Koji 7700

The blonde duelist made his draw, and breath a sigh of relief. Finally, something good.

"As obsolete as it may sound, size doesn't matter. So I summon Morphtronic Slingen."

The blue machine shot up, whipping it's cord (1200/800), (1400/800)

"But my turn's not done here! So I play the spell Morphtronic Accelerator. All I need to do is return a Morphtronic monster from my hand to my deck, and one of your monsters go boom. And since you only have one, the choice is not hard to make! But that's not all, I can also draw 1 card.

A shining metallic spear struck the machine in the chest, shattering it. "Shoot, my spell only works if the monster's destroyed by battle.

Oliver drew quickly.

"Oh yeah! I play Junk Box. So come back, Boomboxen!"

The stereo shaped machine emerged next to Slingen (1200/400), (1400/400). Okay, when did I loose control here?! thought Koji in dismay.

"Go get'em guys!"

Boomboxen unleashed a massive wave of sounds, forcing Koji to cover his ears. Slingen came up next, striking him with it's lash.

"I end my turn with a face-down" said Oliver, as Boomboxen shattered.

"Enjoy your fun while you can! For me, I set a monster and a face-down, then pass!

"Backing into a corner are you, you arrogant prick?!"

Koji didn't bother to answer, white with rage.

Oliver 4800 – Koji 3500

Oliver made his draw. Just keeps getting better and better!

"Looks to me like the so called "genus deck" isn't doing so well. But hey, at least my deck's working just fine. So I summon Morphtronic Remoten".

A large device, resembling a remove control appeared. It sprouted arms and legs, standing firm in front of the blonde duelist (300/1200), (500/1200).

"To start, I remove Boomboxen from my graveyard, I can add a Morphtronic monster from my deck to my hand with a lower level, such as Magnenbar. Next, I tune my two monsters to summon my ace!"

The two monsters dissolved into seven bright stars, and the yellow metallic dragon emerged, landing with a loud shriek (2300/2500), (2500/2500).

"Meet my Power Tool Dragon! I hope you become good friends, because I don't intend to let anything happen to it."

"Not much to look at!" replied Koji.

"I can assure you he feels the same way. But before I attack, I use his effect: I can take 3 Equip Spells, then you can pick one and add it to my hand."

"Fine, I take the left one" replied Koji uninterested.

Oliver added the card to his hand. Okay, not the best thing I could get right now, but it should do for now.

"Power Tool Dragon, time to clean up the field!"

"And you expect to win with such tactics! I activate Cyber Repairer. You get to draw a card, but in exchange, my machines can't be destroyed by battle!"

The metallic dragon struck the hidden monster, revealing a young mage, wearing silver metallic robe (0/0), (300/300).

"You were saying?"

"I say there are plenty of turns to go. So I combine my dragon with Power Shield and place a face-down. With that I end my turn."

Koji drew, and looked to his opponent. I can't loose again. I can't let myself be humiliated, not at his hands!

"Your dragon's going down! And it all starts with this. I summon my second Tech Genus Ogre. And by tuning it and my Mage, I can summon Tech Genus Power Gladiator WAX 1000".

The axe wielding warrior landed before Koji, making the earth shake (2300/1000), (2600/1300).

"Strike down his dragon! I command you!"

With a loud battlecry, the warrior leaped, it's axe raised high. The axe collided with the beast's chest, and the shield shattered.

"You won't destroy my monster that easily. All I need to do is offer my equip spell card, and my monster is spared."

The Japanese boy shook his head his veins bulging.

"I set a card. Just go already!"

"I think Oliver just figured out the best way to win." said Andora.

"How's that?"

"Just look. Koji, a powerful duelist, but he's also arrogant as hell. That's what got him beaten the last time".

"So that's what's happening now?"

"Just watch and see."

Oliver 4700 – Koji 3500

"My move again then! You know the drill, pick one and I take it."

"The middle one then!"

"Great choice. For me that is! I combine my dragon with Power Pickaxe. And for it's effect, I remove your Gardna, and give my monster an additional 500 ATK. And besides that, your monsters loose their ATK bonus."

"You know what they say: Rome wasn't build in one day, but the gladiators did die in one. Take down his warrior!"

Koji laughed, pressing a button on his disk.

"You won't be destroying anything. I activate Metal Coat. All I need to do is offer this card, and my machine escapes without a scratch!"

The body of the warrior glowed, and was covered by a layer of silver. The blow from Power Tool Dragon was deflected, much to Oliver's anger.

"Next time, do something that's not a waist of time!"

"Oh, I will!"

"Only if you have a turn. In the mean time, I play the spell Tech Revival, which means I can summon back my Mage. And while I didn't use it's effect the first time, I can use it now. I tune it with my Tech Genus Shooter ADDW-02 from my hand, to summon this lovely lady: Tech Genus Wonder Magician!"

The pink haired female mage rose, blowing a kiss to the short duelist (1900/1500).

Oliver took a step back. Ho boy, I know where this is leading.

"You're done! I tune my two monsters to summon the incarnation of the future: Tech Genus Blade Gunner MAXX-10000."

With a loud zoom, the metallic giant laded on the field, it's rifle armed and ready (3300/2200). All Obelisk students cheered, covering the feint encouragements from the red students.

"I have one more thing to do: use the spell Level Synergy. If my monster battles an inferior creature, that monster looses 400 ATK for each level in the difference."

The humanoid machine unleashed a volley of lasers towards Power Tool Dragon. The dragonic creature blocked the attack with it's left arm, and Power Pickaxe shattered.

"Looks like you have a really short memory pal!"

"And so do you, if you can think this duel's over. I activate Battle Return. Since my monster failed to destroy your monster, I can cut it's ATK in half, and strike again. And with no equips left, your dragon's finished!"

Blade Gunner turned around in mid-air, unleashing another devastating volley. It pierced the dragon's torso, tearing it to pieces. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" though Oliver, as his eyes met his creature's before vanishing.

"I told you, getting attached to cards is useless! I did you a favor. If you can't go on after loosing that, you have no business being here!"

Oliver 2350 – Koji 3500

The young duelist drew, grieved and demoralized. He checked the card, and sighed. Hey, it's Jasons's card. Boy, he sure finds a way to help me out. I need to make this count.

"Your fancy toaster doesn't scare me pal! And here's one of the reasons: it's called Armor Enforcer. As long as I skip this battle phase, I can special summon a level 3 or lower Machine from my deck. And that would include Morphtronic Cameran."

Another robot, resembling a red and black camera appeared. It was short, it's left arm resembling a camera flash (800/600), (1000/600).

"I end my turn here."

"How foolish! Placing a monster that weak in attack mode! All I need to attack it and you loose!"

"Then go ahead and try."

"I WILL! Blade Gunner, attack!"

The volley of lasers struck the camera machine, shattering it. A blue shield of light shrouded Oliver, and the beams just blew of.

"What in the world…"

"My spell has another effect: the monster that battled takes no battle damage. And since Cameran was destroyed by battle while in attack mode, I can summon any other Morphtronic monster from my graveyard. And I think Slingen will do for now."

"How many lucky breaks can one freshmen have?!"

"More that you've got bits in your computer."

"Funny. Let's just see how long you'll be laughing.

Oliver 2350 – Koji 3500

"You remember when you said that I need to let go of my cards? Well, I don't intend to do that! I activate the second effect of Machine Assembly Line. Since there are eight counters on it, I can offer it to summon a machine from my graveyard with a lower level than the number of counters. So take a guess what level Power Tool Dragon is."

"You mean…"

The spell vanished, opening a tare into space and time. Power Tool Dragon flew out, staring down the monster responsible for it's destruction (2300/2500).

"Big deal! My monster's still superior in terms of power."

"For now at least. But you remember my monster's effect right. Take your pick."

"If you insist. I choose the left one."

"And you get what you want! I combine my dragon with Double Tool D&C."

"Care to explain?"

"Why don't I just attack instead. Power Tool Dragon, take that thing out of here!"

The metallic dragon glowed, as it's ATK rose to 3300, as Koji drew back in shock.

"Guess you figured out, right? My monster gain 1000 ATK if it attacks. And even if our monster's ATK are tied, my monster can survive by offering my spell card instead".

"Like hell you will! I activate Klein's Labyrinth. Which means my monster cannot be destroyed by battle, and I take no damage as well."

Time and space began to shift, and Blade Gunner seemed to merge with the very environment. Power Tool Dragon tried in vain to strike the target, but was unable to do so.

"Another chance shot down the drain." taunted the Japanese boy.

"We'll see about that. Make your turn!"

"Gladly!" shouted Koji, drawing in anger. "Nobody makes me look bad. I'm a pioneer of the new age! And you're nothing before me! Blade Gunner, strike his dragon!"

"You really need to take a time out pal! So take this: Time Burial. At the cost of a card from my hand, I can copy the effect of the last card played during the previous turn. And that would be Klein's Labyrinth."

Several dimensional rifts opened, and the volley of lasers were absorbed. The metallic dragon gave a taunting look, making Koji cringe.

"WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GET RID OF YOU?!"

"More than you can dish out pal!"

"You'll get more! More than you bargained for. I end my turn!"

Oliver 2350 – Koji 3500

"Time to show you what you're missing."

"What I'm missing?!"

"I'll show you. I play Card of Sanctity."

Both boys made their draw. Oliver looked in surprise. It was the card Lloyd gave him. Guess he was right. This could just win it for me.

"To begin, I play the spell Armament Reincarnation. Since I have some Equip Spell cards in my graveyard, I can summon them to the field as monsters. The only catch is that they are still treated as spell cards!"

"What are you talking about? You can't change spell cards into monsters!"

"Looks to me like I just did. And the fun's not done yet. It's time to play the "Can you pick the correct spell card" game! Choose wisely."

"I pick the middle one!" shouted Koji.

"You want it, here it comes. Go, Mage Power!"

Several arcane circles encircled Power Tool Dragon, changing it's color to bright blue (4800/2500).

"The duel ends here! Take down his Blade Gunner"

The jets beneath the dragon's wings flared up, as the creature slashed to it's target (5800/2500). The drill shaped arm stabbed the monster in the chest causing a massive rupture. Explosions engulfed it's body, as it collapsed into flames and black smoke.

"I'm not done!" roared Koji.

"My face-down would disagree. So I activate Power Break! Since I have Power Tool Dragon in play, I can return up to 3 Equip Spell cards in play to their owner's deck, and deal 500 damage for each one. Which is all you have left!"

Power Tool Dragon raised it's metallic arm, launching a jolt of energy. What am I missing? What? What made me loose again! He sank to his knees, lost in his own thoughts.

Oliver 2350 – Koji 0

0 0 0 0 0 0

"What can I say, one of the best duels I ever saw!" said Jason, shaking his hand.

"Hey, couldn't have done it without your card. By the way, do you still need it? Cuz I sure could…"

"No problem, keep it. It doesn't work with my stratedy anyways."

"I'd rather have you on my team than against me." said a familiar voice.

They turned around, and saw Marcus walking towards them. He stood before Oliver, giving him a thumbs up.

"Well, you always said you wanted people on the team who you knew."

"And that's what I got, thank God."

"So what's left now?" asked Marcus.

"To choose a name for the team. And please Oli, no more whacky ideas please."

"Come on, don't tell me ALL of them are bad!"

"Any suggestions?" asked Andora.

"I've got one. We let our decks decide. We make one draw. Monsters are level 3, Traps are level 2, and Spells are level 1. Smallest number wins." replied Marcus.

"Sounds good to me."

"Same here" said Oliver.

Andora too nodded in approval. All four reached for the decks. Marcus made the first draw, revealing it to be Sirocco the Dawn. Andora drew, and showed Core Barrier. Oliver drew, and bowed his head in silence. It was Morphtronic Celfon.

Jason reached for his deck. He drew, and showed the card.

"Well, I guess that concludes that" replied Oliver.

The card was Reinforcements of the Army.

"So what's your choice?"

Jason thought for a few seconds, and his eyes flared up.

"Since the deck made the choice, I say we take the name of the winning card. Let's name ourselves Team Reinforcements. How's that sound?"

"I'd say pretty good." replied Marcus.

"I'm all for it."

"Same here."

"Then Team Reinforcements it is" said Jason, extending his hand.

Oliver stood on the tips of his toes, and placed his hand above his best friends. Andora followed his example. Marcus was the last. He paced his hand, squeezing slowly. He was no longer alone. For the first time, his dreams were clear.

0 0 0 0 0 0

That night, they had been called back to the central building. The news had spread as wildfire, making them famous in a matter of hours. For the first time in his life, Oliver had to give autographs, and Jason had to fight his way trough several groups of screaming girls. And while they didn't like a great deal the formal offices, the peace they offered was more than welcomed. They stopped before the office of the chancellor.

"Who do you think will coordinate the team?"

"I heard it will be miss Allbright." replied Andora.

"Guess we'll see."

The sound of footsteps made them turn around. Rossler came up to the head of the stairs, and stood before them, menacing and proud. He crossed eyes with Marcus, but the boy didn't even blink. He didn't want to look weak, nor to reopen old wounds.

"What are you doing here?" he asked coldly.

"We're waiting for our team coordinator sir." replied Andora.

"You're looking at him!" said Rossler with a wide grin.

All four exchanged worried looks. Rossler took out four pieces of paper, and handed it to them.

"Here are the rules of the tournament. Be sure to memorize them. and from this point on, you'll have to give extra effort. That means you'll have to come to my special training course three times a week."

"Special training?" asked Oliver in a low voice.

"Is there an echo here? I expect you to be there, no excuses!"

He scanned them with his cold glare.

"You're dismissed!"

0 0 0 0 0 0

FEATURED CARD REVIEW

Machine Armored Unit

Spell / Continuous

Once per turn, when a Machine-Type monster is destroyed by battle and sent to your Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 Machine-Type monster with lower ATK and the same Attribute from your Deck.

An extremely good support for a powerful group of monsters. Being a continuous card means you can gain the effect multiple times, and your opponent will have to waist a card to remove it. Special summoning from the deck is always good, and the restrictions aren't that big of a deal.

So is this card for every machine deck? The answer is no. it only works for decks where the machines share the same attribute. The most obvious are the Machina archetype, all being EARTH monster, a trait shared by the Ancient Gear and Gadget archetype. The third archetype that benefits from this card is the Cyber archetype, where all if not most monsters are LIGHT. Ally of Justice also make good use of this card.

Rating:

2 / 5 Traditional

4 / 5 Advanced (in the mentioned archetype only)

3 / 5 Art

NON TCG CARDS USED

Phantom Destruction

Trap / Normal

Flip one face-up card on the field face-down.

Used by Aki during episode 60 of Yugioh 5DS

Cyber Repairer

Trap / Normal

Your opponent draws 1 card. During this turn, Machine-Type monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle.

Used by Syrus during episode 95 of Yugioh GX

Metal Coat

Trap / Normal

After activation, equip this card to a monster you control. The equipped monster cannot be destroyed by card effects. When the equipped monster would be destroyed by battle, you can send this face-up card to the Graveyard instead.

Used by Lotten during episode 92 of Yugioh 5DS

Armament Reincarnation

Spell / Normal

Special Summon as many Equip Spell Cards and Equip Trap Cards from your Graveyard as possible; they are treated as Effect Monster Cards (ATK 500/DEF 500). Apply each card's effect(s) to itself, if possible. (They are still treated as Spell and Trap Cards.)

Used by Gekkou Tenma during the Yugioh GX Manga

Battle Return

Trap / Normal

This card can only be activated in your Battle Phase when an attack from monster you control is negated or cannot destroy an opponent's monster by battle, halve that monster's ATK and It can attack once more this turn.

Klein's Labyrinth

Trap / Normal

Activate only when your opponent's monster declares an attack. Switch the original ATK and DEF of that monster until the End Phase of the next turn. During the turn this card is activated, reduce all Battle Damage you take from your opponent's monsters to 0, and your monsters are not destroyed by battle.

Used by Placido during Yugioh 5DS

Time Burial

Trap / Normal

Discard 1 card. The effect of this card becomes the effect of the last card played during the previous turn.

Armor Enforcer

Spell / Normal

Special summon 1 level 3 or lower Machine-type monster from your deck and skip your Battle Phase. If the monster summoned by this effect battles, all battle damage becomes 0.

Tech Genus Laser Ogre-LG 100

Level 4 / EARTH / Fiend / ATK 1700 / DEF 600

Once per turn, you can destroy 1 card you control to inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. This card is also treated as a Machine-Type monster. When a Spell or Trap Card you control which targets a Machine-Type monster affects this card, this card's original ATK and DEF are halved. When this card is destroyed, you can add 1 card of the same name from your Deck to your hand. You cannot use it this turn.

Tech Genus Destroyer NV-008

Level 5 / Fiend / FIRE / ATK 2000 / DEF 1000

If this card destroys a monster by battle, you can destroy a face-down monster your opponent controls and inflict 500 damage to your opponent. This card is also treated as a Machine-Type monster. When a Spell or Trap Card you control which targets a Machine-Type monster affects this card, this card's original ATK and DEF are halved. When this card is destroyed, you can add 1 card of the same name from your Deck to your hand. You cannot use it this turn.

Level Synergy

Spell / Normal

Select 1 face-up monster you control. During that turn, if it battles a monster with a lower level, the target monster looses 400 ATK for each level between the two monsters.

The above cards are my own creation. All credit goes to me.

Coming up…

James Seer takes his plan to the next level, traveling to Germany to revive a forgotten technology which nearly brought down Kaiba Corp. Only this time the stakes are much higher. And so are the losses. Don't miss Cybernetic Hidden Technology.