Chapter 11 - The Mind of Bastion Misawa
It was a nice sunny day on Duel Academy Island. And yet barely anyone was enjoying it. Instead, they were at the duel arena, ready to see the Academy's Kaiser in action.
Blake Reese had been through a lot lately. Since receiving losses at the hands of both Jaden Yuki and Syrus Truesdale, he had become somewhat of a joke around the Obelisk Blue dorm. Gone was the respect he believed he had earned. Now he only found mockery. It was embarrassing. But he had come to a simple conclusion. If he could beat Zane Truesdale, all would be right with the system. Everyone would see that his losses had been mere flukes. They would see him for his true power.
"So, are you finally ready to have a loss added to that record of yours?" Blake asked smugly as he shuffled his desk, inserting it and drawing his opening five cards. "The title of Kaiser will be mine."
"No, it won't." Zane said simply as he drew his own five cards, activating his duel disk. "You couldn't even beat my brother despite being in the higher dorm and having a more powerful deck. You have great cards, but you don't know how to use them."
Scowling, Blake raised his duel disk. "Time to shut you up!"
Zane merely shrugged, moving into a stance.
"DUEL!"
Blake: 8000
Zane: 8000
"I'll go first!" Blake said, snapping the top card off his deck, and immediately grinning. "I discard the Level 8 Cosmo Queen, the Level 8 Rabidragon, and the Level 8 Spiral Serpent!"
"And we know what that means." Syrus muttered to Jaden as they watched the duel, a three-headed dragon appeared behind the Obelisk Blue duelist.
"My Montage Dragon (8/?/0) gets its ATK by multiplying the total Level of monsters used to summon him by 300!" Blake explained. "And that was 24 Levels (8/7200/0)!" Smirking, he emptied out the rest of his hand. "I place two cards face-down and end my turn."
Zane sighed as he drew his card, looking at his hand. "Too easy. I activate Heavy Storm."
A hurricane tore across the arena, wiping out Blake's two set cards with ease. Zane clearly wasn't anywhere close to done as he placed another card on his field. "Since you're the only one of us who controls any monsters, I can Special Summon Cyber Dragon (5/2100/1600)!"
The silver serpent like machine appeared on the field, roaring as Zane moved again. "I now activate Evolution Burst! Since I control Cyber Dragon, I can destroy one card on your field. As a downside, I can't attack with Cyber Dragon or any cards named Cyber Dragon." The mechanical dragon roared once more, a powerful blast of energy hitting Montage Dragon head on and destroying it with ease.
Blake cursed angrily at the situation he suddenly found himself in. "Whatever! Cyber Dragon can't attack this turn, you said it so yourself!"
"You're right." Zane said as he placed one more card into his duel disk. "But there is so much more to do than just use Cyber Dragon. I activate Power Bond to fuse my Cyber Dragon on the field with the two copies of Cyber Dragon in my hand!"
There were gasps around the arena, many watching already knowing exactly what was about to happen. Jaden watched as three copies of Cyber Dragon vanished into the vortex, and the massive Fusion that had beaten him came down behind Zane.
"Cyber End Dragon (10/4000/4000)." Zane smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. "Power Bond also doubles the original ATK of the monster Fusion Summoned via this card (10/4000 * 2 = 8000/4000)! Try harder next time. Cyber End Dragon, finish this!"
The combination of three Cyber Dragons sent out a blast from each of its heads. The blasts came together to envelop Blake in a bright light. When the light faded away, he was lying flat on his back.
Blake: 0
Zane: 8000
"Your brother really knew how to perfectly take down Blake, huh?" Jaden asked Syrus as they looked out on the field. It was gym class, and baseball was the chosen sport. Every student was lively. Clearly, seeing the Kaiser perform a One Turn Kill had made people very excited.
"He knew Blake only paid attention to power without strategy." Syrus said as he nodded. "So, he looked over his hand saw how he could easily win. It wasn't even a challenge. I don't know why Blake thought he could stand up to him."
"Man, I can't wait to duel Zane again one day." Jaden grinned, before he noticed it was his turn. "Alright, time for me to take the bat!"
Bastion smirked to himself, holding the ball as he looked at the Slifer. "So, we meet on the field, Jaden. Do you think you have what it takes to beat me here?"
Jaden laughed, twirling the bat in his hand. "Well, let's find out, Bastion! Hit me with everything you've got!" He felt the adrenaline running through him, getting into the best possible position.
"Oh, I intend to." Bastion grinned before throwing the ball with all of his might.
After the two teams switched sides, Jaden found himself as the pitcher. As he was waiting for the next batter, Syrus came up to him with a confused look.
"Hey, Jay, what are you doing?" Syrus asked with confusion. "You started out great by making two of them strike out, but since then you've just made bad throws and allowed the opponents to walk. What happened?"
Jaden grinned. "All part of my master plan, Syrus. Because now? I get to throw the ball right at Bastion."
Syrus, as well as another few of the teammates, facefell. "You did all of that just to go up against Bastion." Syrus asked in amazement. "Don't you want to win?"
Jaden nodded. "Of course, I do, Sy. Which is why I'm going to win against Bastion here." Jaden laughed as he looked over to see the Ra Yellow coming towards the field, bat in hand.
"You're unbelievable." Syrus muttered before he returned to his position. Meanwhile, Bastion took up his own position. "Well, Jaden, it appears we're facing off again in this game." He got into the proper stance, ready to counter whatever Jaden threw at him.
"Yep, so let's see who definitely is the best!" Jaden yelled with enthusiasm before he sent the ball flying directly towards Bastion.
Bastion grinned, feeling a fire within him as he swung the bat with all his might, fully ready to match Jaden's power with his own.
Away from the field, near all of the equipment, Dr. Crowler was passing by, muttering angrily to himself.
"Everything I do, that Slacker seems perfectly ready to play against." He grumbled. "First, I give Chazz the ultimate deck and Yuki beats him. Then I hire Titan and he disappears after clearly losing to Yuki. And then I call in world famous Tag duelists and yet Yuki and his friend Truesdale manage to pull out some sort of miracle? I am sick of it!" He was cut off from any more thoughts as he suddenly felt something collide with his face, sending him off his feet and into some nearby equipment.
"Heads up!" He heard an all too familiar voice call. As he began to steady himself, Crowler could see Jaden and Syrus running over towards him. "Actually, I guess it's a little too late to say that." Jaden said as he and his roommate came to a half. Crowler suddenly shot up from his position, making them jump as they took in the fact that he still had the ball stuck to his eye. As it fell off, he began to yell at them.
"Just what do you think you are doing?" The Ancient Gear Duelist shrieked. "Attacking a teacher with such violence is absolutely despicable!"
Jaden shook his head, raising his hands in innocence. "We didn't mean to, Dr. Crowler, we swear! It was – "
"My fault!" Bastion yelled as he came over to stand next to him. "This was not Jaden's fault, Professor. It was entirely mine. I was the one who hit the ball, and I believe I got carried away by the game and thus put in far too much power."
At that, Crowler seemed to mellow. "Ah, Bastion! I have been meaning to talk to you for quite some time now! I have paid close attention to your dueling style. And you are quite the talent. Come with me, I have a proposition for how you could best excel at this academy."
Before anyone could get another word in, the Obelisk Blue had already wrapped his arm over Bastion's shoulder, walking the Ra Yellow away from the field and off to his office.
Chazz walked towards the classroom, thinking of what he had seen in the morning. Blake had stood absolutely no chance against Zane to the point that it was embarrassing. Zane had dismantled everything Blake had put up in a single turn, and decimated his life points to add insult to injury. Was the gap between Zane and the other Obelisks really that great? What would have happened if Chazz had dueled the Kaiser instead?
As he walked into the classroom, something felt off. People glanced towards him, but there was something different about the way they did it. Some with disdain, others with indifference. Shrugging it off as people just being in a bad mood, Chazz went to sit in his usual seat with the Obelisks.
However, as he began to head into the row of seats, one of the Obelisk Blues stuck his feet out to block the way. "And what exactly do you think you're doing, Princeton?" He asked with an arrogant smirk.
Chazz narrowed his eyebrows. "I'm taking my seat, you idiot, what does it look like? Now move before I make you move."
"That won't be necessary, Chazz." Crowler called from his desk at the front of the classroom. "You have been moved down five rows, next to Blake." Chazz cast his glance down to the rows, gasping when he saw Blake now clad in a uniform for Ra Yellow.
"Five rows?" Chazz asked in bewilderment. "But that row is for the Ra Rejects. I'm an Obelisk Blue, professor, I don't belong with those losers."
"That is up for debate." Crowler said simply. "You lost to Jaden Yuki in the first tests of this term, and that is beginning to make me wonder if you do belong in my prestigious dorm." He smirked inwardly. "So, you will duel Bastion Misawa. If you win, you may gladly take your regular seat again and everything will be as it was. But if you lose, Mr. Misawa will be promoted to Obelisk Blue while you take his place as a Ra Yellow student."
Chazz paled as snickers broke out around him. "Ra Yellow? But I'm a Princeton, Dr. Crowler. We're the top of the world everywhere. I can't be anything less than the best."
"And as it stands, you are a long way away from being anything even remotely close to the best." Crowler said coldly. "You will be dueling Bastion tomorrow. And for your sake, I hope you are able to win this duel."
As the snickers turned into jeers and insults, Chazz did the first thing he could think of. He turned around and ran away from it all. He would not lose his position as an Obelisk Blue student. He knew, in that moment, that he would do whatever it took to be what his brothers needed him to be. He would do whatever it took to win the upcoming duel.
He would not be a Ra Yellow.
"So, you're going to duel Chazz?" Syrus asked Bastion as he and Jaden walked with the Ra Yellow back to his dorm.
Bastion gave a small nod. "It would appear so. Though I can't say I saw this coming so soon, I had always considered him to be a hurdle I would one day be made to overcome."
Jaden gave a small nod. "So, you think you can win then?"
Bastion chuckled as they came up to his room. "I do not content myself with just thinking. I know I can beat Chazz. After all…" He said as he opened his door. "Duel Monsters is essentially one huge formula."
Jaden and Syrus gasped as they stepped inside. For one, Bastion had no roommates, and the room was definitely bigger and better than the one they shared with Chumley. And to add to that, each wall was covered in scribbles, presumably from Bastion. Numerous equations surrounded them.
"Around you, you'll see my work to fully understand the art of dueling." Bastion grinned. "I have worked constantly to comprehend every factor that makes a duel, and have put the results found into crafting the perfect decks. My brain is my greatest asset."
"Woah." Syrus said as he looked around the room. "This is really amazing, Bastion. It's like you've planned for every possible situation that could ever come up in a duel. How are you only Ra Yellow?"
"Most Obelisk Blues had to go to a private school." Bastion explained. "If you didn't go to one of these skills, you most likely won't get a higher dorm than Ra Yellow upon entering the Academy. After all, I received the top mark in the entrance exam, and yet I still find myself a member of Ra Yellow."
"Fair enough." Jaden said with a shrug. "I didn't really care too much about what colour I'm wearing anyway."
"But I must admit that I was hoping to get some help." Bastion said with a smile. "You see, I have managed to memorise all the formulate you see around me. But there is always more to learn. Unfortunately, as you can see, I have no more room to use for holding my formulae. So, I ask…." He said, opening his closet to reveal a few buckets of paint and some brushes. "Would you be able to assist me in preparing for my new calculations?
"Just call me Michelangelo!" Jaden called with vigour as he ran the brush over the ceiling again. Hearing the laughter from Syrus and Bastion, he got a bit full of himself. "Get it? Because I'm – woah!" He had made a bad misstep while on the ladder, falling back and seined paint flying directly at Syrus.
Syrus gasped as suddenly he was covered in white paint, lunging forward at Jaden and attacking him with a paint brush, turning the Slifer Red into a Slifer White very quickly.
As Bastion burst out with laughter, he didn't notice the two boys stop fighting with each other. He didn't notice them share a look as they both grabbed a bucket of paint. He did, however, notice when a fair amount of paint was dropped onto his head, covering him from head to toe.
After they had finished doing the painting, Bastion invited the two Slifers to eat lunch at the Ra Yellow dorm.
"Is that lobster?" Jaden asked in astonishment as he looked over his food. "Man, at the Slifer Red dorm, you were considered lucky if you were able to work out what exactly it was you were eating."
Bastion chuckled, watching his friends indulge in the high-quality food. "This is still little compared to Obelisk Blue. Apparently, they have full buffets where they can choose all kinds of different food to eat."
"Either way, this is still much better than anything we could have." Getting a curious look, he glanced over to Bastion. "Now that I think about it, we've barely seen your deck, Bastion."
Jaden nodded in realisation. "Oh yeah! You played little in your entrance exam or in your test duel."
Bastion shrugged. "I believe one statistic in dueling many forget to factor is what the opponent knows about your deck. Thus, when I duel, I make sure to keep my strategies as hidden as possible What you saw was me merely being aware of what I played."
Syrus nodded in understanding. "I get it. But either way, I'm absolutely certain you'll show Chazz just how great people that aren't in Obelisk Blue can be."
Bastion grinned. "I am certain of that too. I'll show him just how great we are."
"Look at us." A voice said crossly, causing Chazz to glance up at the plasma television across from him, two men were looking at him. One of them had shoulder length black hair that curled out at either side. He had a matching goatee, and was wearing a black suit. The other man had lighter hair as well as a lighter suit.
"We expect better from our little brother." The darker haired man said crossly. "You aren't worthy of the Princeton name if you aren't able to stay in Obelisk Blue. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Slade, I understand just fine." Chazz said, barely holding back the need to yell at them. If there was anyone that could always make him feel worthless, it was his older brothers.
"Actually, I don't think you understand a thing." The other brother said. "We barely managed to contain the fact that you lost to a Slifer Red of all people. If you screw up any more, I can guarantee you'll be out on the street before you can even activate your duel disk."
"I get it, Jagger!" Chazz yelled. "I'll do what I have to and win the duel tomorrow." Not exactly in the mood to hear more insults from his older brothers, Chazz ended the call and walked over to his window, glancing out at the Academy. Something about it felt so different at night. Like it was an entirely different place.
"Huh?" Chazz murmured as his eyes got notice of something. Heading along one of the lit pathways was Bastion. But for whatever reason, he was walking towards the Slifer Red dorm, accompanied by Jaden and Syrus.
"So, Misawa has left his dorm room abandoned…" Chazz said curiously, a million thoughts running through his mind.
Chumley was surprised as he turned over in the top bunk and looked down. While Syrus was in the middle bunk as usual, Jaden was sleeping on the floor next to Bastion. "Hey, Sy, what's the Ra Yellow doing here?"
"He was painting his room." Syrus explained. "Since it all needs time to dry, Jaden and I decided to let him crash here for now. It won't be a problem."
Giving a small shrug, Chumley rolled over and drifted back off into a slumber, Syrus not too far behind him.
A loud knocking was the first thing Jaden registered as his eyes opened. It was constant, seeming to have no end. It occurred to the Elemental HERO duelist after a few moments that the knocking was coming from his door. Clearly, someone had come to see them. Getting to his feet lazily, Jaden noticed that the other three in the room were beginning to wake up as he opened the door.
Ms. Dorothy almost fell through the doorway when Jaden opened the door. Steadying herself, she looked at him with distress. "Oh, Jaden. It's horrible. You have to come and see this."
"What is it, Miss Dorothy?" Jaden asked, but the card shop owner was already rushing off towards the pier. Jaden decided to run after her, and he could hear Chumley, Bastion, and Syrus all following him.
He didn't have to ask her what was wrong as he came to stand next to her. He just followed her line of sight, and gasped at what he laid his eyes upon. He heard similar gasps as the others came to stand next to them.
"Defenders Intersect….Vorse Raider…" Syrus mattered as he looked over to the Ra Yellow. "Bastion, aren't these your cards?"
Bastion nodded. "And it isn't just a few cards either. By the looks of it, this is my entire deck. Presumably I left it in my dorm room while I stayed overnight in your room. Someone then snuck in and stole my deck, and now we're here."
"And we already know who." Jaden said angrily, hating to see such a despicable act done to a deck. "Who else would benefit from getting rid of your deck other than the guy you're supposed to duel later today?"
Chumley looked over the cards in worry before he too looked towards Bastion. "But how are you even gonna duel Chazz if you can't use a deck?"
"We can worry about that later." Bastion said in a calm voice. "But according to the time, the duel is scheduled to start soon. So, I believe it is in my best interests to make my way to the duel arena." Without another word said, he turned on his feet and walked off to the Academy.
As Bastion came closer to where he was supposed to duel Chazz, Bastion heard footsteps approaching. He didn't need to look, he already knew who it was. Jaden was the first to catch up to him, followed by Syrus, with Chumley bringing the group to four.
As they walked in, an immediate snicker was heard. "Well, I guess it's true what they say. Losers stick together. Because here comes the Ra Reject with his band of Slifer Slackers." The voice of Chazz Princeton rung through the arena. Jaden immediately looked up to the Obelisk Blue in anger. "Hey, what's the big idea throwing all of Bastion's cards into the water, Chazz?"
"Yeah." Syrus said, stepping forward. "Were you just too scared to face Bastion in a duel that you decided to play dirty and throw away his entire deck?"
Crowler raised his eyebrows, glancing over to the Obelisk. "Do you have any idea what they're talking about, Chazz?" The Ancient Gear duelist inquired with a curious tone in his voice.
Chazz gave a shrug. "No idea, Professor. Maybe Bastion just chickened out of the duel. He realised he would lose easily and instead decided to try and blame me for it."
"Except you are to blame for it." A voice called out. As the five men present turned, they were greeted by two familiar figures.
"Zane? Alexis?" Jaden said with a raised eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"
"It's like I said, Chazz is to blame for it." Alexis said. "We saw him by the pier last night, and he was clearly throwing something into the water. I couldn't tell what it was, but it's obvious now that he threw the cards you guys found.
Jaden turned back to face Chazz. "You were lying. You did throw the cards into the water."
Chazz fumed. "I didn't throw your cards into the water, and you can't prove it even if I did."
"Fine." Bastion said simply. "You didn't, and we can't. Now that we have gotten those matters out of the way, how about we work towards beginning our duel?"
Everyone gave him a strange look. "But Bastion, how are you supposed to duel without a deck?"
Despite it all, Bastion chuckled. "You all seem to misunderstand me. While I did indeed lose some cards, my studying of the game has also told me that one deck simply is not enough." He opened his placer, revealing three decks on either side of the inside. "That's why I hold my true decks with me at all times. Each represents a different attribute, and each is fully ready to take you down." Smirking, he took out one of the decks and slid it into his duel disk. "So, what say you, Chazz? Are you ready to face the raging tides?"
"A WATER deck." Chazz realised, moving to stand across from Bastion at the arena. "Fine by me, I'll defeat anything you have."
Jaden, Syrus, Chumley, Alexis, and Zane all moved to sit in nearby seats. Crowler moved over to his own section, opening a small notepad to make notes during the duel.
The Ra Yellow drew with confidence. The Obelisk Blue drew with ferocity. And with all their enthusiasm running through them, their shouts carried high.
"Game on!"
Chazz: 8000
Bastion: 8000
"I'll go first." Chazz said, drawing his card. "I place one card face-down and then summon my Cthonian Soldier (4/1200/1400) in attack mode!" A warrior wearing dark armour and wielding a soldier appeared in front of Chazz.
"I remember this monster." Jaden noted. "Chazz used it against me in our first duel. When it's destroyed in battle, Bastion will take the damage too."
"I end my turn." Chazz said simply. "Bring it on, Reject."
"With pleasure." Bastion grinned as he drew. "I think a simple play will suffice this turn. I summon Hydrogeddon (4/1600/1000) in attack mode!"
Appearing next to the Ra Yellow was a strange creature. It seemed to be a dinosaur, and yet it wasn't entirely solid. It was brown in colour, but looked look it was some sort of substance.
Bastion smiled. "Hydrogeddon, attack the Cthonian Soldier with Hydro Gust!" Leaping forward, the monster landed in front of the warrior and breathed out a powerful blast that disintegrated the soldier.
Chazz: 7600
Bastion: 8000
"You set off the effect of my Soldier!" Chazz called out as a piece of the monster's sword flew at Bastion. On reflex, the Ra raised his disk to block the hit, but still felt his life points drop slightly.
Chazz: 7600
Bastion: 7600
"But I also activated my own monster's effect." Bastion pointed out. "When Hydrogeddon destroys a monster in battle, I am able to Special Summon another! A second copy of the dinosaur appeared. "And this one can still attack!" It charged forward, knocking into Chazz and making him stumble back.
Chazz: 6000
Bastion: 7600
Crossing his arms over his chest, Bastion nodded at the Obelisk. "It is your move, Chazz"
"Awesome!" Chumley said cheerfully. "With just one card from his hand Chazz has already done major damage to Bastion."
Chazz growled as he drew his next card. "Alright the, I use Call of the Haunted to bring back my Cthonian Soldier!" As his monster reappeared, he played another card. "And I combine that with Inferno Reckless Summon in order to bring out the other two!" Two more copies of his warrior appeared at either side the first one.
"Inferno Reckless Summon also lets me summon another copy of Hydrogeddon." Bastion pointed out as a third copy of his monster appeared next to him.
"Big deal." Chazz shrugged as he inserted another card into his disk. "I activate United We Stand! Now one of my Soldiers gains 800 ATK for every monster I control!" The Cthonian on Bastion's right suddenly flowed with power (4/1200 + 2400 = 3600/1400 + 2400 = 3800). "Soldier, do your thing!" The warrior launched forward, cutting the middle Hydrogeddon in half.
Chazz: 6000
Bastion: 5600
"Now I end my turn." Chazz smirked. "Face it, loser. You might as well just hurry up and surrender here and now."
"I have no intention of doing that." Bastion said simply, drawing his card. "And you made a fatal flaw. I summon Oxygeddon (4/1800/800) to my field." A monster that appeared more dragon was on the field now. It was green, and almost seemed to be made of wind.
"Oxygeddon, attack one of the weaker soldiers!" Bastion ordered, as his monster moved quick and easily defeated Chazz's monster.
Chazz: 5400
Bastion: 5600
"Did you forget Cthonian Soldier's effect?" Chazz taunted as Bastion was again forced to block the sword fragment.
Chazz: 5400
Bastion: 5000
"Actually, I didn't." Bastion smirked as one of the two remaining Hydrogeddons attacked the other weak soldier.
Chazz: 5000
Bastion: 5000
When the attack came this time, Bastion ducked his head down in order to avoid it.
Chazz: 5000
Bastion: 4600
"I don't get it." Syrus said in confusion. "He may have lowered Chazz's life points, but it meant tanking his own too. Why would he do that?"
"Don't worry." Alexis said with a smile. "Everything is definitely going according to plan on Bastion's end."
"Bastion's playing smart." Zane explained. "Keep in mind that Chazz's United We Stand depends on the number of monsters on his side of the field. So, with Bastion reducing it to just one…"
The powered soldier was still strong, but seemed weaker than before (4/3600 – 1600 = 2000/3800 – 1600 = 2200).
"I think that is enough damage for one simple turn." Bastion said calmly, placing another card into his disk. "With one face-down card, I pass the duel onto you." He said, giving a small nod to the Ra Yellow.
On the inside, Chazz was fuming. 'Who does this kid think he is? Acting like he can beat me without any sort of effort on his part. Whatever, I'll show him and I'll show Jaden and I'll show my brothers that not a single person can possibly beat me.' Drawing his next card, he immediately saw his pathway. "Since my good old soldier has at least 2000 ATK, I can sacrifice him and discard the rest of my hand in order to bring out my Infernal Incinerator (6/2800/1800)!"
A creature appeared now. Describing it as grotesque would be selling it short. It was difficult to work out what exactly it was supposed to be. It appeared to be sort some of insect, with spikes running long its back. On its head was the top half of a fiendish warrior whose body had long since withered away.
"My Infernal Incinerator gains 200 ATK for each monster you control!" Chazz said with a smirk. "And I count three (6/2800 + 600 = 3400/1800)! So, my big guy will destroy Hydrogeddon!"
"This is about to be some big damage!" Jaden said in alarm as the creature advanced on Bastion's field. The Ra Yellow, however, seemed completely calm as he pressed a button on his duel disk. "I reveal my Trap Card, Amorphous Barrier! Since you declared an attack while I control at least three monsters, this card immediately ends the Battle Phase!"
Chazz snarled as his monster was stopped in its tracks. Since he had sacrificed his hand to get out his monster, he had no more moves to make. With a firm nod, he passed the turn over to Bastion.
Once Bastion drew his card, he smiled at his findings. "Tell me Chazz, are you well versed in the art of chemistry?"
"What?" Chazz asked, caught off guard by the strange question.
"Chemistry." Bastion said with a smile. "As you can tell, my monsters share the theme of chemicals. Hydrogen and Oxygen. And you were probably wondering why, despite claiming to use a WATER deck, would I use my Oxygeddon? The answer is simple. If I have two Hydrogen and one Oxygen, what is the result?"
Alexis gasped as the answer came to her. "It's H20…it's water!"
Bastion grinned. "Right you are, Alexis. I activate Bonding – H20! By tributing two Hydrogeddons, and one Oxygeddon, I may give birth to one of my best creatures!" His monsters disappeared in a haze of smoke. When the smoke cleared, a dragon was hovering above Bastion. And not just any dragon. This dragon was entirely made of water.
"Say hello to my Water Dragon (8/2800/2600)!" Bastion smiled. "You cannot win against me, Chazz. You never stood a chance in this duel."
"You idiot." Chazz laughed. "You still have one monster on your side of the field (6/3400 – 400 = 3000/1800)! You're not strong enough."
"Do you know the simple thing, Chazz?" Bastion asked with a simple chuckle. "Water trumps fire. And my Water Dragon reduces the ATK of all FIRE and Pyro monsters become zero! And last time I checked, your monster ticks one of the boxes (6/3000 – 3000 = 0/1800)!"
Chazz gasped as all of his monster's power faded away in a wave. Before he could even fully react, a tsunami wiped away his monster, leaving his field empty.
Chazz: 2200
Bastion: 4600
"It is your move again, Chazz." Bastion said simply. "Let's see you try and win again."
Alright, Bastion has almost got this!" Syrus cheered. "Chazz has nothing in his field or in his hand so he'll need some major luck to pull off this win."
Chazz drew his card from his deck and subsequently activated it. "I play Card of Demise! Now I draw five cards, but discard my hand on my fifth Standby Phase after using this." Drawing the full five cards, he smirked up at a certain Slifer Red. "Here's a few cards you should recognise, Jaden. First, I activate Fiend's Sanctuary in order to get a Metal Field Token (1/0/0)." The familiar assortment of silver spheres appeared. "And then I sacrifice it in order to Tribute Summon Ushi Oni (6/2150/2950)!" The bull like creature the Obelisk had summoned in his first duel with Jaden was back.
"And why waste any time!" Chazz said with a smirk. "I offer my Ushi Oni in order to Special Summon Giant Ushi Oni (8/2600/2100)!" The half spider-half bull landed on the field with a resounding thud. "And for my final card, Bastion, Loss of Strength! Not only can your monster not attack, it has its ATK reduced to 0 (8/2800 – 2800 = 0/2600)!"
"Oh no." Jaden said in worry. "When it destroys an opponent's monster in battle, Ushi Oni gets a second attack. Unless Bastion has something special planned, Chazz has this won."
"Giant Ushi Oni, do your thing!" Chazz ordered as his monstered used its legs to quickly charge over to Water Dragon, slamming into it and destroying it with ease.
Chazz: 2200
Bastion: 2000
"Water Dragon has one final effect!" Bastion called. "When I lose it, I am permitted to bring back the monsters who formed it. I summon two Hydrogeddons and one Oxygeddon, all in attack mode!"
His field was suddenly filled again with the water components (4/1600/1000) x 2 (4/1800/800).
"I guess you didn't hear Jaden." Chazz smirked. "Because now my monster will destroy one of your Hydrogeddons!" On cue, his fiend took a chomp of the dinosaur, sending it straight back to the Graveyard.
Chazz: 2200
Bastion: 1000
"Looks like you're still an idiot." Chazz taunted. "I end my turn."
"It is not that I am an idiot, Chazz." Bastion said quietly, drawing his card. "It is that you are too predictable. By leaving my monsters in attack mode, you were guaranteed to attack the weaker one. Had I left them in defense mode, it is likely I would have lost my Oxygeddon, which I need. I now discard Duoterion in order to add one Bonding Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand. I choose Bonding - D20. And now I say goodbye to Hydrogeddon and hello to my second copy of Duoterion (5/2000/1400)!"
A monster that had a similar look to Hydrogeddon and Oxygeddon appeared, albeit with a slightly greyish colour.
"When Duoterion is Normal Summoned or Special Summoned, I am permitted to call back one of my three chemicals." Bastion explained. "And thus, the copy of Duoterion I discarded returns to me!" A duplicate of his newest monster appeared on the other side of Oxygeddon. "And finally, Bonding – D20!"
All three of the Ra Yellow's cards disappeared in another haze of smoke. "You now are witness to your defeat, Chazz! I call upon….Water Dragon Cluster (8/2800/2600)!" As the smoke cleared, Water Dragon was back. Or rather…two Water Dragons. They seemed connected, both staring down Giant Ushi Oni.
"Big deal!" Chazz called. "I can still survive this turn and find a way to take you out next turn!"
"And again, you lack imagination." Bastion sighed. "When Water Cluster Dragon is Special Summoned, an effect kicks off. Not only to all of your Effect Monsters become unable to activate their effects, but their ATK falls to 0. Goodbye, Chazz."
As Chazz gasped from the power fading away on his monster once more (8/2600 – 2600 = 0/2100), he felt a sense of déjà vu as he was once again surrounded by the waves. This time, however, he was caught up in the chaos, as the duel came to its conclusion.
Chazz: 0
Bastion: 1000
As Chazz lay on the ground, cursing everything, Bastion reached into his pocket. "And by the way, Chazz, you missed something. The cards in the water had equations on them." He showed off the Vorse Raider to prove how right he was. "Perhaps you wrote these equations yourself, but I highly doubt that. Face it. You cheated, and you lost. You shouldn't even be called a duelist."
Snarling to himself, Chazz ran right out of the arena, not stopping anytime soon."
"Well done, Bastion." Crowler said, softly clapping as he came towards the Ra Yellow. "As the agreement stated with the test, you can now be promoted to Obelisk Blue."
Bastion grinned. "As much as I do appreciate the offer, Dr. Crowler, I'm afraid I simply cannot accept it." Speaking again before Crowler could question him, he looked over to his friends. "I am not able to leave Ra Yellow until I have beaten the best duelist in my year. And that is you, Jaden. I must overcome you first in order to earn the colours of Obelisk Blue."
Jaden grinned widely. "Then let's duel right here and right now."
Bastion shook his head. "I am afraid I must decline. I must create a seventh deck in order to face you. We will duel eventually, but simply not today."
Jaden gave a nod as the two duelists stared each other down, the passion of their rivalry burning inside of them. In that moment, Bastion was sure of one thing.
Their duel would be a legendary one.