This story was done in collaboration between me and Jriddle41 (Sodormatchmaker on DeviantART), and we both own the OCs that are used in the story. Everything else belongs to their respective owners:
Thomas and Friends (c) Hit Entertainment and Mattel
The Railway Series (c) Rev Wilbert Awdry
Yu-Gi-Oh! (c) Konami
Song used in Intro and Outro (c) Unknown
WARNING: Again, this story is rated T (13-plus) for moments of violence, bloody moments, and some suggestive themes. Viewer discretion may be advised.
Opening up inside Boxford Corp headquarters, some of the communication girls were typing away on their computers to keep a track on the duels going on in Knapford City. Skiff was present to help them out.
"Master Skiff." said one of the girls. "The duels for the Battle City tournament are all underway."
"That's good to hear." Skiff replied pleasantly. "My brother will be pleased to hear that."
On cue, the nearby doors opened and the silver-haired boy entered the bridge.
"Well?" he asked immediately.
"The two duelists appear to be Thomas Billinton and a man we're not familiar with." said another girl.
Spencer looked at the data screen with interest. "That must be one of the Rare Hunters." he thought to himself.
"His name is Seeker, and he didn't exist in our database until about a week ago." explained another girl "He must have hacked in and entered himself into the system."
"But that's illegal!" protested Skiff.
"The Rare Hunter's cards aren't even registered." Another girl pointed out. "They may be fake cards."
"Hacking into our database is bad enough." Skiff said angrily. "But using counterfeit cards? That makes it worse! He should be disqualified!"
"Hold on, Skiff." interrupted Spencer calmly. "I'm interested to see how Billinton can handle against an Exodia deck... Let them continue."
"Are you sure?" The younger boy asked, looking really surprised.
Spencer nodded in confirmation. "Yes. It's to see if he truly has what it takes to beat the strongest monster in the whole game."
"Alright then." said Skiff reluctantly, looking back to the screen containing Thomas and the Rare Hunter's duel. "I sure hope you know what you're doing, big brother."
"I was rather hoping the same thing." thought Spencer to only himself, still watching the duel.
Title: Let Battle City Begin!, Part 2
Back in Knapford, Thomas and the Rare Hunter were both locked in a staring match as their duel continued.
-Thomas (LP: 4000) only had Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast on his field.
-The Rare Hunter (LP: 4000) had two monsters and a face-up Trap card in play.
"You may have figured my strategy out-" said the Rare Hunter. "-but it's still too late to try and stop me!"
"We'll see about that." retorted Thomas, drawing his card. "It's my turn now!"
Turn Five: Thomas Billinton (LP: 4000)
Deck: (32)
Current Hand (3): Book of Secret Arts, Skull Archfiend of Lightning, and Time Seal
He added the card to his hand and went into the battle phase immediately.
"Go, Chimera!" The blue-haired boy pointed forth. "Destroy the Stone Statue with Pulverizing Pounce!"
Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast obeyed and pounced onto Stone Statue of the Aztecs, destroying it in an instant. The entire crowd cheered in response.
"Finally, I'll place this card facedown." Thomas finished, slotting a card into a Spell/Trap slot on his Duel Disk.
A facedown card materialized behind Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast.
"My turn is over."
"And my turn shall begin!" laughed the Rare Hunter. "Once I draw the final piece of Exodia, your Dark Magician will be mine!"
He reached to his deck when...
"Not so fast!" shouted Thomas immediately, raising his hand up as his facedown card flipped up and revealed itself. "I activate my set Trap card - Time Seal!"
"Not Time Seal!"
Thomas then explained his card's effect. "Now you must skip your draw phase for this turn."
The Rare Hunter grumbled in annoyance. "So you've saved yourself for now. Big deal! My Gear Golem can still withstand your Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast's attack."
Turn Six: Rare Hunter (LP: 4000)
Deck: (25)
Current Hand (5): Right Arm of the Forbidden One, Left Arm of the Forbidden One, Exodia the Forbidden One, Right Leg of the Forbidden One, and Swords of Revealing Light
"For now, I'll end my turn without playing a single card."
"Thomas was able to stop that guy drawing the final Exodia piece this turn." said Paxton. "Isn't this exciting?"
Diesel snorted. "Not really... I wanted to see Billinton get his butt stomped by Exodia..."
"Oh, Diesel..."
Percy, Edward, and Emily each also had some words to say about Thomas surviving the turn...
"It was lucky he was able to stop that Rare Hunter from drawing Exodia." said Edward. "But unless he does something before the Rare Hunter's next turn, he'll be done for."
"Isn't there a way for Thomas to at least get rid of one of the pieces in that Rare Hunter's hand?" Emily asked in an upset tone.
"If he draws the right card now, then yes."
"Come on, Thomas." whispered Percy. "You can do this."
"Make your final move, kid!" The Rare Hunter demanded.
Thomas braced two fingers onto his deck.
"This is it." he thought. "If I don't draw the correct card now, then Red-Eyes will remain with this Rare Hunter, I will be out of the tournament, my Dark Magician will be taken from me, and I'll never find the answers I seek. Please, Heart of the Cards, grant me your strength..."
He drew his card, slashing a colourful wave in the process (Destiny Draw).
Turn Seven: Thomas Billinton (LP: 4000)
Deck: (31)
Current Hand (3): Book of Secret Arts, Skull Archfiend of Lightning, and Lightforce Sword
Looking at his card, Thomas made his big play...
"I activate the Spell card Lightforce Sword!"
The mentioned Quick-Play Spell card materialized face-up.
"Lightforce Sword?" The Rare Hunter blinked.
"This allows me to remove one card in your hand from play for about three turns." explained Thomas. "And I'm aiming for a piece of Exodia you currently hold!"
The Rare Hunter smirked in response, bringing his hand up without showing what the cards are.
"Too bad the card is picked randomly."
A sword materialized out of Thomas's activated card.
"If I choose the wrong card, then it will all be for nothing." The blue-haired boy thought to himself.
(elsewhere...)
Inside Boxford Corp, Spencer and Skiff were both watching the duel.
"Think Thomas will pick the right card?" asked Skiff.
"I have confidence that he will." Spencer replied, looking dead serious. "Because if I can beat Exodia, then so can Billinton."
Skiff nodded to his big brother and resumed watching the duel.
(elsewhere...)
Back in Knapford City, Thomas finally made the command...
"FIRE!"
The sword from the Lightforce Sword card fired off towards the Rare Hunter's hand. Everyone braced themselves as the sword struck a card. The Rare Hunter screamed in outrage at what card was pierced.
"You've pierced Exodia's Right Arm!" The man cried out.
The card was locked down on the ground near the furious Rare Hunter, who cast a glare of hate towards his opponent.
"You've saved yourself again!"
Everyone in the crowd (except for Diesel) breathed a sigh of relief.
"And now to deal with your Gear Golem." continued Thomas, holding up another card. "I sacrifice Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast to summon the Skull Archfiend of Lightning!"
Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast vanished in a blue streak, and appearing in its place was a monster resembling the Summoned Skull! ...but it looked darker and a bit meaner, too (Level: 6/ATK: 2500/DEF: 1200).
"The Skull Archfiend of Lightning?" Percy blinked.
"Doesn't that monster resemble Thomas's Summoned Skull?" Emily asked, looking at Edward.
"Yes it does." nodded the intelligent blue-haired boy. "But this one seems to be a bit more powerful."
"Skull Archfiend of Lightning-" commanded Thomas. "-destroy Gear Golem with Archfiend Lightning!"
The Skull Archfiend of Lightning obeyed and charged itself in yellow lightning before firing it off. The lightning struck and destroyed Gear Golem the Moving Fortress.
"Now you're defenseless!"
"Geez, Billinton has got more lives than my cat." complained Diesel.
"I didn't know you have a cat, Diesel." Paxton responded in an absentmind-like tone.
"With that, I end my turn." said Thomas, feeling satisfied.
"You'll pay for that!" growled the Rare Hunter, drawing a card.
Turn Eight: Rare Hunter (LP: 4000)
Deck: (24)
Current Hand (6): Right Arm of the Forbidden One, Left Arm of the Forbidden One, Exodia the Forbidden One, Swords of Revealing Light, and Left Leg of the Forbidden One
TURN UNTIL (Lightforce Sword) finishes: 3 Turns
As expected, the drawn card was a piece of Exodia (Left Leg).
"I've drawn the Left Leg, but with the Right Arm out of play I can't declare an automatic win." The Rare Hunter thought unhappily. "But I'll still win this duel."
"So what will your action for the turn be?" asked Thomas. "With the Right Arm out of play for the next three of your turns, you cannot summon Exodia."
"That may be, but I can still save myself!" retorted the Rare Hunter, sliding a card into a Spell/Trap slot on his Duel Disk with a laugh. "I play Swords of Revealing Light!"
The mentioned Spell card materialized face-up.
"Not the swords!" cried Thomas.
On cue, several light swords strike the ground around Thomas's field.
"Now you can't attack me for three whole turns." grinned the Rare Hunter. "Which will give me lots of time to wait out for your Lightforce Sword to wear off."
"Oh no!" cried Emily, sounding distressed.
"I'll find a way around your swords." insisted Thomas firmly, as he drew his next card.
Turn Nine: Thomas Billinton (LP: 4000)
Deck: (30)
Current Hand (2): Book of Secret Arts and Chain Destruction
Swords of Revealing Light: Three turns
It was then the blue-haired boy took a small life point hit (LP: 3500).
"In order to keep my Skull Archfiend of Lightning out on the field, I HAVE to pay a total of 500 life points every one of my standby phases."
"A pricey monster you have there." joked the Rare Hunter.
Thomas ignored the comment and took a card from his hand.
"I'll set one card facedown-" The blue-haired boy sighed, slotting his card into his Duel Disk. "-and end my turn."
(elsewhere...)
Back in Boxford Corp, Skiff spoke to Spencer again.
"Will Thomas lose?" he asked worriedly.
"Looks like it." said Spencer bluntly. "Further more, this Rare Hunter has three sets of Exodia, so all he needs to do is draw another Right Arm and he'll still win."
"Oh..." Skiff looked disappointed, and began to resume watching the duel.
"However!"
"Huh?" The younger boy looked back over to Spencer.
"Billinton has pulled off a few miracles as we've known." continued the silver-haired boy. "Maybe he'll surprise us with something."
His eyes were mainly staring at the facedown card Thomas had set earlier.
"And maybe that set card will be that one miracle."
(elsewhere...)
Back in Knapford, it was the Rare Hunter's turn.
"And now it ends!"
With that said, he drew his card.
Turn Ten: Rare Hunter (LP: 4000)
Deck: (23)
Current Hand (6): Right Arm of the Forbidden One, Left Arm of the Forbidden One, Exodia the Forbidden One, Left Leg of the Forbidden One, and Change of Heart
TURN UNTIL (Lightforce Sword) finishes: 2 Turns
"Not what I need, but still should be helpful." The Rare Hunter thought, holding held his card out. "I'll activate the Spell card Change of Heart!"
The mentioned Spell card materialized face-up.
"With this, I can take control of your Skull Archfiend and use it against you!" said the Rare Hunter, cackling wickedly. "Prepare to be attacked by your own monster!"
But Thomas was not gonna let that happen... "I activate my Archfiend's special ability!"
A dice appeared.
"What?!" cried the Rare Hunter.
"If this dice lands on either a 1, 3, or 6-" explained Thomas. "-then my Archfiend will negate your card and destroy it. Go dice roll!"
The dice was launched into the air before landing on the ground. Thomas watched anxiously while the Rare Hunter watched gleefully. Finally, the rolling stopped and landed...
...on a six.
"It's a six!" cried Thomas. "Skull Archfiend, counter!"
The Skull Archfiend of Lighting obeyed and fired some lightning at the Rare Hunter's Spell card, destroying it.
"Grrr!" The Rare Hunter growled. "You've saved yourself again!"
"Agreed." Thomas nodded. "Just in time for my turn!"
Turn Eleven: Thomas Billinton (LP: 3500)
Deck: (29)
Current Hand (2): Book of Secret Arts and Pot of Greed
Swords of Revealing Light: Two Turns
The blue-haired boy looked at his drawn card as he took another life point hit (LP: 3000).
"I have two turns to take Exodia down." he thought to himself. "Maybe this card will help me get a way to truly do so."
Thomas held his new card out.
"I activate Pot of Greed! This lets me draw two additional cards from my deck."
With that said, he drew two new cards, showing relief at what they were.
"A good start." Thomas thought, before taking one of them and slotting it into his Duel Disk. "I'll set this card facedown-" A facedown card materialized beside the first facedown. "-and then finally-" He placed a monster card onto a monster field slot on his Duel Disk. "-I'll summon Alpha The Magnet Warrior in attack mode!"
Appearing beside Skull Archfiend of Lighting was the green-hued magnetic warrior (Level: 4/ATK: 1400).
"Thanks to my swords-" reminded the Rare Hunter. "-you still can't attack me."
"Don't count me out just yet." Thomas retorted. "My strategy to destroy Exodia will not even require me to attack at all!" He the smirked. "...besides, you have so many Exodia cards in your deck that drawing the one piece you'll need to win will be quite hard."
Despite looking confident that he would do so, the Rare Hunter knew Thomas was right. He had three copies of each Exodia piece, thus making it difficult on drawing the exact piece he needed.
"It's my turn!" The Rare Hunter said, drawing a card.
Turn Twelve: Rare Hunter (LP: 4000)
Deck: (22)
Current Hand (6): Right Arm of the Forbidden One, Left Arm of the Forbidden One, Exodia the Forbidden One, Left Leg of the Forbidden One, and Exodia the Forbidden One
TURN UNTIL (Lightforce Sword) finishes: 1 Turn
The drawn card was shown to be another Exodia part (Head).
"Another head." The Rare Hunter thought to himself. "I could still just hold out until my next turn so that the Lightforce Sword will wear off and I get the Right Arm back." He then got a worried look. "But... what if that Thomas kid does indeed have a plan to end my Swords of Revealing Light card before then? I'll be wide open for a direct attack! What do I do?"
Emily, Edward, and Percy each noticed that the Rare Hunter was looking nervous.
"Looks like Thomas has him on the ropes." said Percy. "He can't think of a way out."
"I suppose I could summon a piece to defend me." The Rare Hunter thought to himself some more. "They count as monster cards, after all."
"Well?" asked Thomas in a mocking tone. "I'm waiting."
The Rare Hunter look a card from his hand a placed it sideways on a monster field slot on his Duel Disk.
"I summon Exodia's Head in defense mode!" he declared. "Now I have a monster to protect my life points!"
Appearing to the field was Exodia's head coming out of part of a pentagram (Level: 3/ATK: 1000/DEF: 1000). Unfortunately for the Rare Hunter...
"Gotcha!" yelled Thomas, pointing forth. "You've activated the Trap card of your demise - Chain Destruction!"
Thomas's first facedown card flipped face-up and revealed itself.
"What does that card do?" asked the Rare Hunter.
Edward smiled. "Oh, he's so gonna regret asking that question."
"As you've summoned a monster-" explained Thomas. "-Chain Destruction destroys every card in your hand and deck with the same name as the one on the field!"
A large spiked chain came out of the card and went right through Exodia's Head until it hit the Rare Hunter's hand and deck.
"My Exodia heads!" gasped the Rare Hunter.
"Now all of the monster cards with the name 'Exodia the Forbidden One' in your hand and deck are sent to the graveyard!" Thomas declared. "Meaning there is no way you can ever hope to summon Exodia now!"
The Rare Hunter was horrified to learn of this. "This isn't possible!" he thought to himself. "That boy managed to defeat the unbeatable Exodia!"
"But I'm not done." continued Thomas, poking a button on his Duel Disk. "Next I reveal my other facedown card - Dust Tornado!"
The other facedown card flipped up and revealed itself.
"This card will destroy any Spell or Trap card you have on the field. And the one that will be destroyed is your Swords of Revealing Light!"
The swords were shattered, freeing Thomas's monsters.
"No!" wailed the Rare Hunter. "You couldn't have done it! No one has ever been able to beat Exodia before!"
"As I said before-" Thomas pointed out, drawing his card. "-I know somebody who did already. It's my turn now!"
Turn Thirteen: Thomas Billinton (LP: 3000)
Deck: (28)
Current Hand (2): Book of Secret Arts and Monster Reborn
He grimaced as he took a life point hit (LP: 2500). Right now, however, it didn't matter...
"Now I play my final card card!" Thomas took his newly drawn card from his hand and slid it into an empty Spell/Trap slot on his Duel Disk. "Monster Reborn!"
Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast reappeared.
"I'll use it to revive my Chimera from the graveyard!"
"Now he's got three monsters while that Rare Hunter only has one!" exclaimed Emily.
The Rare Hunter screamed in despair as he was about to lose the duel.
"Alpha The Magnet Warrior!" commanded Thomas. "Destroy Exodia with Magnet Sword Slash!"
Alpha obeyed, charging forward and slashing through the Exodia head.
"With your last monster gone, you are wide open." boomed Thomas fiercely. "Chimera, Skull Archfiend of Lightning, attack the Rare Hunter directly!"
The two monsters obeyed and attacked at once... The Rare Hunter didn't know what hit him and was quickly thrown onto his back (LP: 0)...
DUEL RESULTS: Thomas Billinton wins!
Diesel watched in shock. "He actually did it." he muttered in disbelief.
The holograms disappeared as everybody else began cheering for Thomas.
"Thomas actually beat Exodia!" cheered Oliver.
"And he didn't even need the help of his magicians, Mr. Oliver." added Toad, Oliver's younger brother.
While everybody was cheering for Thomas, none of them noticed Diesel sneaking up to the Rare Hunter.
"You won't be needing these anymore." The devious black-haired boy grinned deviously, while beginning picking up the man's dropped Exodia pieces.
Thomas then approached and picked up a card lying on the ground. It was the Red-Eyes Black Dragon monster card.
"I'll be taking Percy's Red-Eyes Black Dragon card back." The blue-haired boy said sternly.
The Rare Hunter was too stunned to reply back. Just then, Diesel's angry voice could be heard...
"HEY! THESE CARDS ARE FAKE!"
Everybody looked in Diesel's direction.
"What do you mean, Diesel?" asked Paxton.
"I mean these cards are fakes!" snapped the devious black-haired boy. "This guy never even had Exodia in the first place."
Thomas walked over and Diesel handed him the cards. After looking over them and rubbing his fingers on the surface of the cards, he gasped in anger and shock.
"He's right." exclaimed Thomas. "They feel rather like cheap newspaper. These cards ARE fake!"
Everyone was shocked and disgusted to learn that the Rare Hunter guy never had three sets of Exodia and merely cheated by using fakes.
"He cheated!" shouted a random voice.
"He should be ejected from the tournament!" came another voice.
Angrily, Thomas immediately tore the fake Exodia cards up into pieces and let the wind carry them away.
"Now no one can use these fake cards again!"
"You, sir-" said Edward to the Rare Hunter, while motioning the index finger of his right hand in a scolding gesture. "-are nothing more than a thief and a cheater."
Thomas walked back over and took the Rare Hunter's only Locator card.
"Also part of Battle City Rules indicates that I also take the loser's Locator card." he said firmly.
Suddenly, the Rare Hunter started going mad. "N-No, master! Please don't be angry!" he cried, holding onto his head in pain.
"What's going on?" Paxton asked nervously.
"I don't know-" gulped Diesel. "-but I'm getting out of here!"
The two boys quickly raced off as the Rare Hunter continued to go mad.
"What's going on?" Emily asked, sounding scared.
"I've seen this happen before." mumbled Thomas, easily recalling the same thing happening to Diesel 10.
Suddenly, the Rare Hunter gave a laugh (with a mix of voices).
"We meet again, Thomas Billinton." said the voice of Marik Ishtar.
"I had a feeling it might be you again..." Thomas seethed. "Tell me who you are!"
The possessed Rare Hunter chuckled. "Very well, my name is Marik."
"What do you want with me?!"
A holographic image of Marik materialized, scowling. "Revenge."
"Revenge?" asked Thomas, sounding confused and angry. "Revenge for what?! What did I ever do to you!?"
"Not just against you." Marik replied. "Against your whole bloodline!"
"What's this clown talking about?" Percy asked, walking over.
"You would never understand the pain my family had to endure." sneered Marik, before returning his attention to Thomas. "But soon you will. I am the holder of a Millennium Item, just like Ishizu Ishtar. One of the three Egyptian God cards is already loose on Sodor. If you're foolish enough to come up against it, you will die by his hands."
"Egyptian God cards?" Thomas blinked, that was something Ishizu never told him about.
Marik smirked. "I see you've never heard of them before."
"Ishizu never mentioned something about a God card." Emily stated. "What exactly are they?"
"Only the three most powerful monster cards ever created." explained Marik. "I already have two of them."
"What are they?!" Thomas demanded. "How were they created?!"
"Like I would tell you." Marik taunted. "You'll just have to find out for yourself!"
"You creep!" Emily exclaimed angrily.
"Let the games begin." grinned the Rare Hunter leader. "I so look forward to playing with you and your friends, Thomas Billinton."
With that said, amid evil laughter, Marik released control over the Rare Hunter, causing him to fall to the ground unconscious.
"That was so creepy." whispered Edward, before looking at the Rare Hunter. "He's still alive, but we'd best let the police know about this."
Percy nodded before a card was shown to him.
"Here you go, Percy." Thomas said. "Red-Eyes is yours once again."
But to his surprise, Percy shook his head no.
"It isn't mine to take, Thomas." he said quietly.
"What?" Emily quizzed. "But, Percy-!"
"Let him talk, Emily." Thomas interrupted. "What do you mean, Percy?"
"I can't take it right now." explained Percy. "If I were to take it back that easily, I won't be a True Duelist. And Red-Eyes wouldn't accept it, either. You and James are both True Duelists—though you are one moreso. When I dueled James back at the San Francisco tournament, I was fighting for mainly myself. That's why I came here. You guys always play honestly with any opponent. You really gave me a lesson—what I lacked is the player's self-esteem."
Emily and Edward both smiled as Percy went on with his passionate speech.
"The Red-Eyes Black Dragon has always been my special card." he said. "He is and always will be my partner. That's why I can't take it now. If I did, then Red-Eyes wouldn't be happy. Thomas, you can have the card temporarily. Besides, I've prepared a new deck for the tournament. With these cards, I'm still qualified to participate. Just in case, I still have both the Flame Swordsman and Time Wizard both to wager." As he spoke, he looked at his Duel Disk and drew the top two cards from his deck, holding them both up to Thomas, Emily, and Edward, revealing them to be the Flame Swordsman and Time Wizard monster cards respectively. "They are my last rare cards. I want to become a True Duelist like you, Thomas. In Battle City, I must show you — when I win in this tournament... When I become a True Duelist, please accept a proper duel with me."
"Oh, Percy." Emily began, smiling as tears fell from her eyes. "That was one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard you say to anyone."
"Agreed." Thomas nodded, also smiling. "I'll take good care of your Red-Eyes Black Dragon card for the time being."
Percy smiled as he and Thomas shook hands, sealing the deal.
"You are the best friend I could ever ask for." Thomas stated.
"Like wise." Percy agreed, turning around. "Well, I'm off to find me some duels."
"Good luck." said Thomas.
With that, Percy headed off.
"So, what do we do now?" Emily asked, seeing that it was now only her, Thomas, and Edward remaining after the green-haired boy had left the group to go find some duelists of his own.
"I guess find some duelists willing to challenge me or accept my own challenge." Thomas replied. "I still need four more Locator cards to qualify for the finals."
(elsewhere...)
Inside Boxford Corp headquarter's bridge, Spencer and Skiff both finished watching the scene with Thomas and Percy on the big computer screen when the latter began to speak to the former.
"Thomas actually got to beat that Rare Hunter!" cheered Skiff.
"Not that I'm surprised." Spencer replied coolly. "After all, those weren't really Exodia cards Billinton was facing." He then turned around to leave. "Alright, I'm off to join the tournament. Skiff, you go and scout around the city and make sure that no more cheaters are found."
"Right, Spencer." said Skiff. He then turned to the girls. "Be sure to notify us if anybody uses an Egyptian God card."
"Yes, sir." nodded one of the bridge girls. "We understand."
And thus, the two boys left the bridge. It was official; the Battle City tournament...had begun.