Episode 10
Yusei Fudo – First Event: Clustering Emotions
Or perhaps, I am simply not accepting what's offered
I could simply be wrong
…
"How interesting," said the hooded man, staring at the screen and watching a live stream of the Duel between DBG and Yusei. He heard the door behind him open and turned his head. "Welcome, Saevio."
The woman entered the room and approached the man.
"I hear the boy is facing the Signers," she replied.
"Indeed. In fact, he has already defeated two of them, and now he is challenging their leader."
"Yusei Fudo?" she asked. "I thought he was against harming others. He certainly seems to be aware of our power."
"Almost, my dear. He doesn't realize he is doing more than just that."
"Perhaps so. However, Jack Atlas was no pushover, and I doubt the boy can stand well against the man who has saved New Domino City from disaster several times. He's barely held his own in education lately."
"Ah, but a few numbers does not truly portray one's skill in a Duel. But if he can, indeed, defeat Yusei Fudo… he will unknowingly set up the bait for the remaining half."
"And that'll make our job that much more easier," Saevio chuckled.
"Indeed." The man turned back towards the screen. "Now… what will you do, Dr. Fudo?"
…
DBG continued down the lane with his dragon beside him.
DBG
LP: 4000
SPC: 0
Scrap Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2800
Yusei remained close behind.
Yusei
LP: 4000
SPC: 0
"I place one card face-down and end my turn!" DBG declared.
"Then it's my turn!" Yusei stated, drawing a card.
DBG
LP: 4000
SPC: 1
Yusei
LP: 4000
SPC: 1
"By sending a Monster from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Summon the Tuner Monster Quickdraw Synchron!"
Quickdraw Synchron
LV: 5
DEF: 1400
"Next, I can reduce the Level of a monster on my field by one to Special Summon Level Eater from my Graveyard!"
Quickdraw Synchron
LV: 5 – 1 = 4
DEF: 1400
Level Eater
LV: 1
DEF: 0
"Then I'll Summon Speed Warrior!"
Speed Warrior
LV: 2
ATK: 900
DBG remained silent in anticipation.
"Now I'll tune Level 4 Quickdraw Synchron with Level 2 Speed Warrior!" Yusei declared.
4 + 2 = 6
"Gathering bonds weave a greater force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Turbo Warrior!"
Turbo Warrior
LV: 6
ATK: 2500
The red metallic monster descended next to Yusei.
…
Crow heard the door behind him open and turned towards it.
"Hey, Crow," Luna greeted as she entered, her brother and Akiza right behind her.
"Hey, guys," he replied. "What's up with you two?"
"What makes you think something's wrong with me?" Leo snapped.
"Whoa, there. I was just asking a question."
"Whatever."
Akiza remained silent. Luna glanced at them, worried. She then looked at the screen.
"Hey, what's going on there?" she asked.
"Oh. Yusei is up against that kid from your school," Crow replied.
"DBG…? Oh, no…"
"Relax, Luna."
"But what if… what if he loses…? Then—"
"He won't lose. You know him better than that."
"And if he does lose, he'll have to answer to me!" a voice declared behind them. Everyone turned towards the door.
"Jack!" Crow and Luna responded, in unison.
"Someone mind telling me why we're meeting today instead of last night like we planned?" he asked, annoyed. "All I got was that something came up last night and pushed it all back!"
"Quit your whining, Jack," Akiza responded.
"What did you just say?!"
"Whoa, whoa! Take it easy!" Crow said, standing between them.
Jack relented. "I don't know what your problem is, but don't take it out on me or I'll give you a real problem to be angry about!"
"Just be quiet," Leo said, in a slightly melancholy voice.
"What is it with you two, anyway?"
"Nothing's wrong with us, okay?"
"What…? Hey!" Jack was being pushed by Crow to another part of the room, with Luna following.
Crow began to speak, "Yusei called off the meeting last night because something happened to those two."
"Like what?" Jack responded.
"They both Dueled DBG… and lost…" Luna answered.
"So? What could that possibly mean?"
"We don't know, either. All we know is they started being like this after they Dueled him," Crow responded.
"You sure they're not just taking a loss too seriously?" Jack rebutted.
"And this is normal? For them?"
Jack was silent.
"Look. I think that DBG kid has something to do with this. So Yusei had me look into it and see what I could dig up. Although… I couldn't find much. Aside from the fact that he caused a few people to act weird after beating them in a Duel, he's pretty much a normal kid that's pressured by school."
"That's ridiculous!" Jack exclaimed.
"But it's true…" Luna replied.
Jack paused for a moment. "Let me guess… you think that, by beating this DBG kid, everyone will go back to normal, right?"
"I doubt it's that simple, though I won't complain if it does turn out like that," Crow replied.
"I don't exactly believe what I'm being told, but if this is the case, then I'm going to have a word with Yusei if he loses to some kid before losing to me! Then I'm going to teach that punk a lesson!"
"Stop it!" Luna interrupted. "I don't think… he's doing it on purpose."
"How could you be so sure of that?" Jack asked. "If he does have these powers like you all say he does, then he should be aware of them. So, therefore, he should know that he's causing trouble!"
Luna and Crow were silent.
"Well, whatever the case," Crow said, "let's just hope Yusei pulls through. Then we can try to get answers from DBG himself."
They all turned towards the screen that was streaming the Duel.
…
"Go, Turbo Warrior! Attack Scrap Dragon!" Yusei commanded, his monster propelling itself towards DBG's dragon.
Turbo Warrior
LV: 6
ATK: 2500
Scrap Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2800
"I activate a Trap! Mirror Force!" DBG interrupted. "When your monster attacks, all Attack Position monsters on your field are destroyed!"
A barrier appeared, stopping Yusei's Turbo Warrior and destroyed it.
"When Turbo Warrior attacks a Level 6 or higher Synchro Monster, that monster's ATK is halved. That's why he used his Mirror Force Trap Card to stop my attack. He definitely isn't one to be underestimated," Yusei thought. "I end my turn!"
"Then I'll go!" DBG declared.
DBG
LP: 4000
SPC: 2
Yusei
LP: 4000
SPC: 2
"I'll place two cards face-down and activate Scrap Dragon's effect! Once per turn, I can destroy a card on both our fields! I'll take out my face-down and your Level Eater!"
DBG's dragon fired a blast at his own card and then obliterated Yusei's ladybug monster.
"Scrap Dragon," he continued, "Scrap Rage!"
His dragon fired another blast, striking Yusei this time and creating an explosion.
Yusei
LP: 4000 – 2800 = 1200
SPC: 2
"That's all for me!" DBG concluded.
Yusei escaped from the cloud of smoke.
…
"That's rough," Crow commented. "It's only his second turn and he already blasted more than half of Yusei's Life Points."
"Yusei's going to have to step up his game if he's going to win," Jack added.
…
"It's my turn!" Yusei declared, drawing a card. "If I don't think of something fast, he'll finish me in the next turn."
DBG
LP: 4000
SPC: 3
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 3
"I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can draw two cards and discard one! Then I'll activate another Angel Baton! Next, I'll Summon Synchron Explorer!"
Synchron Explorer
LV: 2
ATK: 0
"When this card is Summoned, I can bring back a monster with 'Synchron' in its name! Welcome back, Quickdraw Synchron!"
Quickdraw Synchron
LV: 5
DEF: 1400
"Now I'll tune Level 5 Quickdraw Synchron with Level 2 Synchron Explorer!"
5 + 2 = 7
"Gathering roars turn into an echoing arrow which tears through the sky! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Archer!"
"I activate a Counter Trap!" DBG interrupted. "Black Horn of Heaven! When you Special Summon a monster, this card negates that Summon and destroys it!"
"What?!" Yusei exclaimed as his monster was destroyed. "I end my turn…"
"My turn!" DBG declared.
DBG
LP: 4000
SPC: 4
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 4
"Scrap Dragon! Attack Yusei directly! Scrap Rage!"
Scrap Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2800
The dragon began to fire another blast.
…
"This is bad," Crow commented again.
"Come on, Yusei!" Jack added.
…
"From my Graveyard, I activate the ability of Fake Gardna! When you attack directly, I can Special Summon him from my Graveyard!" Yusei declared, as a clown-like monster appeared next to him.
Fake Gardna
LV: 4
DEF: 2000
The monster intercepted the blast from DBG's dragon.
"I end my turn," DBG concluded.
…
"That was close…" Luna said.
"Why's he bothering?" Leo asked.
"Leo…?"
"He's at a major disadvantage. He'll never win…"
"Don't say that!"
"The Duel's not over yet, Leo. You, of all people, should know better than to give up so easily," Jack stated.
"Whatever…" Leo mumbled.
…
"It's my turn!" Yusei stated.
DBG
LP: 4000
SPC: 5
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 5
"I Summon the Tuner Monster Junk Synchron!"
Junk Synchron
LV: 3
ATK: 1300
"When Junk Synchron is Summoned, I can Summon a Level 2 or below monster from my Graveyard. I Summon Tuningware!"
Tuningware
LV: 1
DEF: 300
"Next, since I have 'Junk' monster on my field, I can Summon Junk Servant from my hand!"
Junk Servant
LV: 4
ATK: 1500
"I'll now tune Level 3 Junk Synchron with Level 1 Tuningware and Level 4 Junk Servant!"
3 + 1 + 4 = 8
"Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"
A large, white dragon appeared next to Yusei, letting out a great roar.
Stardust Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2500
The marks on DBG's chest and Yusei's arm began to glow, both of them feeling a strong pulse emanating from them.
…
Crow, Jack, Akiza, and the twins began to feel pain in their marks.
"How… is he doing that…?" Jack asked.
"I don't know…" Crow replied. "Must be because… both of those dragons are on the field at once…"
…
"That beast won't do you any good, Yusei," DBG stated.
"When Tuningware is used as Synchro Material, I can draw one card." Yusei continued. "Then I activate the Speed Spell – Silver Contrails! Since I have at least five Speed counters, this gives a WIND monster on my field, like Stardust Dragon, 1000 ATK until the End Phase!"
Stardust Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2500 + 1000 = 3500
"Now, go, Stardust Dragon! Attack Scrap Dragon!" Yusei commanded. "Shooting Sonic!"
Yusei's dragon fired a blast at DBG's, vanquishing it.
3500 – 2800 = 700
DBG
LP: 4000 – 700 = 3300
SPC: 5
Stardust Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 3500 – 1000 = 2500
"My turn," DBG said, breathing heavily.
DBG
LP: 3300
SPC: 6
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 6
"Now I activate Angel Baton, so I can draw two cards and discard one! Then I'll place two cards face-down and end my turn!"
"Then it's my draw!" Yusei declared.
DBG
LP: 3300
SPC: 7
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 7
"I activate the effect of Speed World 2! By removing seven Speed Counters, I can draw one card!"
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 7 – 7 = 0
"Stardust Dragon, attack DBG directly! Shooting Sonic!"
"I activate the Continuous Trap Call of the Haunted! This brings back a monster from my Graveyard! I Summon Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!"
Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon
LV: 10
ATK: 2800
"Care to continue the battle, Yusei?" DBG challenged.
Yusei remained silent, signaling that he is no longer attacking. "I'll Set a monster and place one card face-down. That's all for me," he concluded.
…
"This is bad," Luna commented. "That dragon has the ability to Summon other Dragons."
"I told you it was hopeless," Leo stated.
"And I told you that the Duel's not over yet!" Jack replied.
"Shut up, Jack. Yusei's going to lose like he should," Akiza countered.
"Knock it off, you guys!" Crow said.
…
"My turn!" DBG declared.
DBG
LP: 3300
SPC: 8
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 1
"And now I am going to use the effect of Speed World 2. I'll remove seven Counters and draw one card!"
DBG
LP: 3300
SPC: 8 – 7 = 1
"I Summon Dragunity Dux! For every Dragunity card on my field, it gains 200 ATK!"
Dragunity Dux
LV: 4
ATK: 1500 + 200 = 1700
"And because of its effect, I can equip Dragunity Phalanx to it!"
Dragunity Dux
LV: 4
ATK: 1700 + 200 = 1900
"Now I activate Phalanx's effect, which allows me to Special Summon it."
Dragunity Phalanx
LV: 2
DEF: 1100
"I now tune Level 2 Phalanx with Level 4 Dux!" DBG declared.
"Here it comes!" Yusei thought.
2 + 4 = 6
"Ominous winds, everchanging. Converge and push everything else away! Synchro Summon! My last outcry, Orient Dragon!"
Orient Dragon
LV: 6
ATK: 2300
"When Orient Dragon is Synchro Summoned… one opponent's Synchro Monster… is banished!"
Yusei and DBG began to feel a burning pain in their marks.
…
"What?!" Jack exclaimed, feeling the burn as well along with the other Signers.
"That's a scary ability right there," Crow commented.
"I knew he was going to do that…" Luna added.
…
"Farewell, Stardust Dragon!" DBG exclaimed, as his new dragon fired a slow breath at Yusei's Stardust causing it to fade away.
"Stardust Dragon!" Yusei exclaimed.
"Now I activate a second Call of the Haunted! But this time, I'll bring back Mystletainn!"
Dragunity Arma Mystletainn
LV: 6
ATK: 2100
"By banishing Mystletainn, I can Summon another Red-Eyes from my hand!"
Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon
LV: 10
ATK: 2800
"I activate the effect of both Red-Eyes! Once per turn, each one can Summon a Dragon from my hand or Graveyard! From my hand, I Summon Lightpulsar Dragon! And from my Graveyard… Scrap Dragon!"
Lightpulsar Dragon
LV: 6
ATK: 2500
Scrap Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2800
DBG grabbed the last card in his hand. "I'll place this card face-down and activate Scrap Dragon's effect! I'll target your face-down Spell or Trap Card as well as mine!"
"I don't think so!" Yusei interrupted. "From my hand, I activate Effect Veiler's ability! By sending it to my Graveyard, I can negate Scrap Dragon's effect until the End Phase!"
"Fine. Scrap Dragon! Attack the face-down monster! Scrap Rage!"
DBG's metallic dragon fired an energy blast at the face-down monster, which was revealed to be a hedgehog with metal on it.
Quillbolt Hedgehog
LV: 2
DEF: 800
"Orient Dragon! End this!" DBG commanded. His dragon then fired a quick breath at Yusei.
…
"Yusei!" Crow, Jack, and Luna exclaimed, in unison.
…
"From my hand, I use the effect of Swift Scarecrow!" Yusei declared, revealing the last card in his hand. A large scarecrow appeared and intercepted the blast from DBG's Orient Dragon. "By sending this card from my hand to the Graveyard when you declare a direct attack, I can force the Battle Phase to end!"
"Fine, then. I end my turn," DBG concluded.
…
"How long do you intend to delay the inevitable, Yusei Fudo? It's only a matter of time," the man stated.
"He is a fool if he thinks he can defeat us," Saevio stated, the "激怒" mark glowing on her chest. "But… what if he does win?"
"I sincerely hope not… from the bottom of my heart," the man replied, placing his hand on his chest next to the "痛み" mark glowing on his chest.
…
"I told you so," Leo said.
"Not yet it isn't," Crow rebutted. "He still has one turn left to turn this around."
"Yeah, right," Akiza stated. "He has no cards in his hand and one card on the field. What will that do against DBG's five dragons?"
"Since when have you been against Yusei, Akiza? You of all people?"
Akiza remained silent.
"Anyway… let's hope Yusei can get out of this," Crow stated.
…
The two turbo duelists continued down the lane. Before they had been above water; now they were above solid ground near the streets of downtown New Domino City.
"Give it up, Yusei," DBG said. "Leave now, go home, and let me be. You won't get past my dragons."
"I won't give up on my friends!" Yusei replied.
"Your friend? I'm not your friend!"
"Anyone who is a friend of my friends is also mine."
"Just shut up. I'm no one's friend… No one! I don't deserve any…"
"You're wrong. You do deserve them. Everyone deserves to have good friends by their side. And we're willing to help you if you let us!"
"Of course I'm wrong… Everything I say is wrong. Everything I think is wrong. Everything I feel is wrong. I'm always wrong!"
"That's not what I—"
"Just give it a rest. The only reason I have your attention at all… you of all people… Yusei Fudo, the champion of the Fortune Cup, the leader of Team 5D's, which reigned victorious at the World Racing Grand Prix, and the one who saved New Domino City from disaster… the only reason I have your attention at all… is because of this stupid mark on my chest!" DBG clenched his fist and held it to his chest near the glowing "嫌い" mark. "If I was anyone else… I'd be ignored."
Yusei remained silent.
DBG hung his head as tears ran down his face. "You and your friends will just be like all the rest… you'll say you enjoy my company… but never bother to do anything with me… and somehow have time for everyone else… and because something about me will push you all away… so why bother starting anything with me to begin with…? No one should have to deal with me…"
Yusei remained silent. He then felt a sensation in his arm where his mark was.
"And don't bother telling me that those friends weren't good friends… because everyone says the same thing…" DBG began to pull away from Yusei.
Yusei felt the sensation in his mark growing stronger as he noticed an aura around DBG. "I can feel the darkness in him growing stronger," he thought, placing his fingers on his Deck about to draw a card. "I have to break through that darkness… and get through to him!"
"No, DBG," he said. "There are good people that are worth being friends with. You'd be able to see that if you give them a chance!"
"Why should I believe you?" DBG asked, looking back at Yusei. "Why should I believe that you're any different from everyone else I've seen?"
"Because I used to live in the Satellite before it was joined with New Domino City, back when we had to rely on great friends to pull through the hard times. No one on Earth can replace them. I believe in my friends, and you can believe in us!"
"Yeah, right…" DBG hung his head again. "You're just telling me exactly what all the others said… trying to use a story to back yourself up… you can't possibly be any different…" he thought.
"I'll prove it to you. Right here, right now!"
DBG remained silent, looking back at Yusei once more.
"It's my turn!" Yusei declared, drawing a card.
DBG
LP: 3300
SPC: 2
Yusei
LP: 1200
SPC: 2
Yusei looked at the card he drew and smiled. "I Summon the Tuner Monster Mono Synchron!"
Mono Synchron
LV: 1
ATK: 0
"Since I have a Tuner Monster on my field, I can Summon Quillbolt Hedgehog from my Graveyard!"
Quillbolt Hedgehog
LV: 2
DEF: 800
"And when Mono Synchron is used in a Synchro Summon, the other Synchro Material has its Level reduced to one! So Quillbolt is now a Level 1 monster!"
Quillbolt Hedgehog
LV: 2 – 1 = 1
DEF: 800
"I now tune Level 1 Mono Synchron with Level 1 Quillbolt Hedgehog!"
1 + 1 = 2
"Gathering wishes will call out a new speed's horizon! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! The power of hope, Synchro Tuner, Formula Synchron!"
Formula Synchron
LV: 2
DEF: 1500
"Formula Synchron's effect activates. When it's Synchro Summoned, I can draw one card from my Deck!" Yusei glanced at the card he drew. "I activate the Speed Spell – High Speed Crash! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can destroy one of my cards on the field along with any other card! I'll target both of our face-downs!"
Yusei's Spell fired a blast at both face-downs.
"At this moment, I now activate my Trap! Dimension Voyage!" Yusei continued. "This card allows me to Summon all my banished Synchro Monsters with their effects negated!"
"What…?" DBG responded.
"Return to the field, Stardust Dragon!" Yusei declared, as he dragon appeared through a wormhole.
Stardust Dragon
LV: 8
ATK: 2500
Yusei's Spell then proceeded to destroy his activated Trap as well as DBG's face-down Dimensional Prison.
"It's still not enough, Yusei…" DBG thought.
Yusei then began to increase the speed of his Duel Runner and caught up with DBG.
"There's only one way to defeat his army of dragons… and cut through the darkness…" Yusei thought, as his and the other Signers' marks began to glow brighter. He closed his eyes as his Duel Runner continued to increase in speed until the tip began to look like it was attempting to pierce an invisible barrier.
DBG watched as his opponent pulled farther away.
"For Akiza… for Leo… for everyone… including you, DBG… in order to break through to you… I have to use that power… the power to break through my normal limits!" Yusei thought.
…
Crow, Jack, and Luna continued watching, the marks of they along with Leo and Akiza glowing brightly.
"Come on, Yusei…" Crow thought.
"You can't lose here!" Jack thought.
"Please…" Luna thought.
…
Yusei abruptly opened his eyes. "We can help you… and you can trust us… and to prove it… I will cut through the darkness! Clear Mind!" he declared. "I tune Level 2 Synchro Tuner Formula Synchron with Level 8 Synchro Monster Stardust Dragon!"
2 + 8 = 10
"Gathering crystal dreams will open the door to a new evolution! Become the path its light shines upon!"
Yusei sped up even more.
"Accel Synchro!"
Yusei vanished along with his monsters.
DBG became wide-eyed as his opponent was nowhere to be seen. He then felt something behind him and turned to look.
"Be born, Shooting Star Dragon!"
Yusei reappeared behind DBG, but, in place of the two monsters he had, there was a single dragon.
Shooting Star Dragon
LV: 10
ATK: 3300
"I activate Shooting Star Dragon's effect. Once per turn, I can check the top five cards of my Deck, and the number of Tuner Monsters revealed determines the maximum number of times it can attack this turn!" Yusei placed his hand on his Deck again and drew the first card. He then revealed it. "The first card! Tuner Monster! Turbo Synchron!"
DBG remained silent.
"The second card! Tuner Monster! Nitro Synchron!"
DBG continued to remain silent.
"The third card! Tuner Monster! Drill Synchron!"
DBG scoffed.
"The fourth card! Tuner Monster! Hyper Synchron!"
DBG's eye twitched.
Yusei placed his hand on his Deck one more time. "DBG! This card will show you my resolve… that we can help you!"
DBG remained silent again.
Yusei drew the fifth card. "The fifth card! Tuner Monster! Debris Dragon!"
DBG became wide-eyed.
…
"Five Tuners!" Luna commented.
"All right!" Crow exclaimed.
"Which means DBG is going down," Jack stated.
Akiza and Leo sat silently, almost surprised.
…
"I've revealed five Tuners," Yusei stated. "Therefore, Shooting Star Dragon can attack five times!"
DBG hung his head forward again. He knew exactly what it meant.
"Go, Shooting Star Dragon! Stardust Mirage!" Yusei commanded.
Yusei's new dragon rose into the sky and split into five, each with a different color overtone—red, orange, light green, yellow, and blue. The five images of Yusei's dragon charged forward, each targeting a different dragon.
"The first battle! Attack Lightpulsar Dragon!"
3300 – 2500 = 800
DBG
LP: 3300 – 800 = 2500
SPC: 2
"The second battle! Attack Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!"
3300 – 2800 = 500
DBG
LP: 2500 – 500 = 2000
SPC: 2
"The third battle! Attack the other Red-Eyes!"
3300 – 2800 = 500
DBG
LP: 2000 – 500 = 1500
SPC: 2
"The fourth battle! Attack Scrap Dragon!"
3300 – 2800 = 500
DBG
LP: 1500 – 500 = 1000
SPC: 2
…
"Yusei's still got one attack left," Crow commented.
"And if it works…" Jack started.
"Yusei wins," Luna added.
…
"And now to end this," Yusei declared. "The fifth battle! Shooting Star Dragon, attack Orient Dragon!"
The final image of Yusei's dragon crashed into DBG's dragon, causing an explosion.
3300 – 2300 = 1000
DBG
LP: 1000 – 1000 = 0
SPC: 2
DBG's monitor then displayed a red "ERROR" on the screen. The wheels of his Duel Runner stopped, causing DBG to swerve out of control.
"What?!" Yusei exclaimed.
Caught off-guard and unable to control his Runner, DBG smashed through the glass barrier on the side of the Duel Lane where it curved and began to fall.
…
It could simply be that everything I say is wrong, everything I do is wrong
Everything I think is wrong, everything I feel is wrong