Duel 14 – Prickly Friends
JC and the rest of the team returned and gave each other high-fives. Yukio beat some Crusader supporter who was really big in the Midwest and Jolene defeated some hipster kid. Maya's match was the most amusing though. She had to fight against a 12 year old who constantly cussed and thought he was mature and hardcore for playing Call of Duty, watching South Park, and listening to Eminem. Let's just say Maya had to send him back to his stepmother to spank him. This was a rare moment of rest between the dozens of duels happening where the whole team could just be together.
Jolene couldn't help but notice how quiet Yukio was the whole time. He sat alone on a cheap folding chair. Jolene gently held his shoulders. "Is something wrong?"
He could have been made of stone, as if Jolene didn't exist. After what seemed like five minutes, he finally seemed to notice her. "What?"
"You're so quiet in this tournament sweetie. I'm worried. What's bothering you?"
"Molotov." In his dark eyes burned with red blames and black embers. "I have a feeling as if I'm meant face him in the final round. It's not destiny or anything stupid like that. I just feel I have to face him and… overcome something and say a message."
"What do you mean? What do you have to overcome?" Jolene prodded, silently desperate for an answer but all Yukio gave her was silence.
Maya peeled Jolene away from her lover. "Leave him alone. This problem is something personal and deep inside him he has to resolve on his own."
It was now time for the next round, as Maximus the generic if not obnoxious announcer was all too eager to let them know. "Now for the next rounds of the Round Robin!" He read off the list of duelists, and the team picked up two duels. "The evasive IvyCat with an unbeatable wall goes against the strange and dreadful BlueLilly! …"
Maya and Jolene gave each other a hug before setting out their own ways. Jolene now stood face to face to the strange and frankly creepy Jiao from team Hate Club. Why Jiao was even an ally was frankly beyond her understanding. When she and Maya came for help all she did was speak in riddles and mock them… while high Jolene might add!
From across the field, Jolene could see a sinister and teasing light in her opponent's eyes. The gothic Lolita outfit she wore didn't exactly help things either.
IvyCat : 4000 || BlueLilly: 4000
IVY_CAT: She is a little bit scared. For all she knows, she never saw BlutLilly actually duel before. She really hoped it wasn't a big mistake. She shakes her head. Being wielded out won't help anything. "All right Alice in Wonderland, I set a monster and two facedown cards. You're move." Ivy waited for her to attack…
BLUE_LILLY: Sets a monster and two facedown cards.
IVY_CAT: "What the hell! What are you pulling?" Lilly repeats, "What are you pulling?" Ivy is indignant, "Copying me, you little coward. Why don't you try something original?" Lilly echoes, "Why don't you try something original? I've played Stalling Decks long before you picked up the game, and believe me your dueling is not from skill but from not being able to fight. So why don't you come at me and break the cycle, unless you're afraid. You like to deck people out. At this rate you'll lose because you went first."
Ivy loses her temper. "Fine! You want me to attack you here I come! I flip my facedown Soul Absorption, summon Banisher of Radiance, and flip Needle Worm!" An angel of abstract mechanical form and a fat worm are borne. "And from Needle Worm's effect you discard – no banish – five cards from your deck, and Soul Absorption gives me 2500 Life Points." (IvyCat LP: 4000 6500)
BLUE_LILLY: "Oh my, you really didn't attack. I'm not surprised. You're really no better than that CrystaalCristy duelist after all." Ivy is indignant, "What do you mean?" Lilly calmly replies, "Think about it, Jolene. Both you and Cristy are self-important rich white princesses with no true sense of self-worth. That's why you both latch unto losers, so your friends can give you an identity you can't find on your own. Whether you are an obnoxious queen bee or a hipster social justice warrior is of no difference."
"I flip my own facedown monster, Swarm of Locusts!" The plague of insects patters at Ivy's card and shatter it while battering Ivy herself. "Locusts' effect takes care of your healing plan. Now for the monsters: I flip a face down Level Limit – Area A and activate Stumbling." Ivy doesn't know what it means. Stumbling forces summoned monsters to defend rather than attack, and Area A forces all low level monsters to attack.
Lilly continues, "I summon Rescue Cat, and banish it to summon two Blade Rabbits from my deck." An otherwise nondescript cat with a yellow hardhat vanishes as instantly as it appears to be replaced by two small but sinister rabbits. The rabbits crouch to defend – and as they do so they throw their knives, killing Ivy's monsters – and go right back to an offensive stance. Lilly commands, "All monsters, direct attack!" The locusts and wicked rabbits swarm and puncture and slash at Ivy who moans in pain. (IvyCat LP: 6500 4700) "I set one card and return my Locusts facedown. The Rabbits die due to the manner they were summoned."
"Now these are some strange monsters right here." Announcer Maximus compulsively comments, "These are definitely not things we see everyday. Can we call this an indie duel of sorts? I think so. Both duelists are using some strange low-level decks." The audience, who enjoyed watching a few Monarchs slug each out, are content this time. Their craving for habit had been fulfilled.
IVY_CAT: Gravity Bind. It is facedown. But she never can truly use it. Lilly is not like most opponents Jolene beats. Most of them just try to beat you down with strong monsters, especially monarchs. But Lilly is different. She also uses low-level monsters. Ivy draws. If only she could hold Lilly off a bit… "I activate Dimensional Fissure: all monsters are banished instead of going to the Graveyard. I set a monster and another card."
BLUE_LILLY: "Face against one unorthodox opponent and you already crumble. Tell me how does that feel, Cristy. I flip Locusts again. Bye-bye recently set facedown." Ivy freezes in horror as the locusts devour her face down Mirror Force. "I know which one is your useless Gravity Bind. I summon Dream Clown." A clown of pink and red, wearing a purple robe and cape, made its appearance, crouching in defense – and gassing Ivy's facedown monster to dissolve into nothingness – and readying itself to offense again. With a twitch of her finger, Lilly sicks the monsters on Ivy. (IvyCat LP: 4700 3500) "I set one card facedown."
IVY_CAT: Draws. Her card is Pulling the Rug, a card used against monarchs, but useless here. She doesn't know what to do. Her options, and her fighting spirit, slowly fade away until only a small faint light spot remains. The rest is blackness. In some mirror in her mind she sees Cristy reflecting back. "Can I be just as bad as the opponent I beat?"
"Snap out of it!" Maya just finished beating some nondescript dreg of no allegiance and just saw what was happening on the stadium. "Don't let her get inside you're head, Jolene Nothing Jiao says is true. She's using her forked-tongue to play mind games with you. You're not like Cristy. You're actually kind and smart and want to make the world a better place, not suck everything out of it bathe in your own privilege. Don't listen to Jiao. Just play."
IvyCat snaps out of her stupor. She is wide-awake, Maya's light of inspiration lifting her up. "Maybe I don't have the biggest advantage, but I can tick you down a bit so I can hold you off. A shield and patience is all I need. I play Dark Hole!" The familiar vortex cycles around the field, starting to draw in BlueLilly's monsters. But Lilly won't let her have a single morsel. "I chain with Magic Drain."
… And the light of inspiration that bore Ivy up, now became flame. She fell and crashed to the ground in wreckage. She had no Spell Card in her hand to discard to let her Dark Hole pass through. Her last measure failed. Cristy once more stared back at her through her inner mirror. "I set one facedown card. Maybe I can still live next turn…"
BLUE_LILLY: "No such chance, CrystaalCristy. The game ends here. I flip my Locusts," and they destroy Ivy's final facedown. "And summon Rescue Rabbit and banish it to special summon two Dream Clowns from my deck." A plump rabbit wearing the trademark hardhat materializes and dematerializes in only a few seconds to be replaced by two more purple robed clowns, making the clown count up to three. "All monsters, direct attack!" And that is how Ivy dies from a thousand paper cuts.
IvyCat : 0 || BlueLilly: 4000
Jolene sunk to the ground, sitting on her feet, and just stared at her deck miserably. The announcer just blared out the victory and the crowd, annoyed at seeing Jolene loses, started throwing food at her. "Boo! This duelist sucks! Go back to the kitchen BIATCH and give Yugi a nice sammich like you should have!" Maya ran to pick Jolene up, using her own body as a shield against the humiliation: the smattering of hotdogs and cheeseburgers and butter-filled popcorn. One dude in the audience piped, "And while we're at it why don't we mail order that gothic Lolita chick as an Asian bride!"
Once Maya successfully escorted Jolene away, Maximus announced, "Well that was a bit of a confrontation right there. A lot of sparks flying in that little catfight wouldn't you agree." The audience cheered. Maya was nauseated, the dark fire deep inside her burning with anger. "And now for our next fight. Another Dark Duelist, the seditious Zarathustra versus our good old frequent dueler here, CaptainDogma! Is God dead? You decide!"
The audience buzzed and roared happily as the duelist CaptainDogma made his entrance. A loud and grungy song from Nirvana battered in the background and the audience beat their own hands and feet in with the rhythm. Strangely enough, Dogma was none other than the young man JC harassed a while ago after he left church. Dogma was a man of pleasant and modest features, light brown hair and sunny brown eyes, and his own simple costume reflected this.
Maya, in the light of the need to "perform" on the stadium, simply amplified her usual wardrobe: a black jacket embalmed by a pink flame, a black skirt with a black belt, and black boots. Her face was only adorned with red lipstick, but it still gave a strong impression.
CaptainDogma approached Maya and offered her his hand. "My real name is Zack. What is yours?" Maya didn't know what to make of his gesture. Wasn't he a supporter of the Crusaders? Wasn't this an attempt to beguile her, to loosen her up with a false friendship so he could catch her off guard?
In spite of her suspicion, Maya yielded and shook his hand. "My name's Marina, but you can call me Maya instead." Zack nodded and said, "Let's have a good game." He returned to his side of the field and the both of them activated their duel disks. "DUEL!"
Zarathustra : 4000 || CaptainDogma: 4000
"What's with the goth chicks who obviously have daddy issues this month?" The audience bemoans. "Take her down Dogma!"
"Ladies first." Dogma gestures.
ZARATHUSTRA: "Chivalrous, but naïve. I set a monster and a facedown card."
CAPTAIN_DOGMA: "That's it? Look who is naïve! You just made yourself vulnerable and you can't do that, even on the first turn or that will cost you the game. Let me show you. I summon Maurauding Captain, and with his effect summon another warrior, Mataza the Zapper from my hand." A blonde-haired warrior with a long sword and scarlet cape materializes and is shortly accompanied by an unmasked samurai, blade drawn out. "I equip Mataza with Fusion Sword Murasame Blade." The samurai blade dissolves and his hand pulses and grows into a brilliant sword itself.
Zarathustra remains silent the whole time. "Your weak defense will cost you the duel. Captain, attack her monster." The Captain swiftly slashed at the monster underneath, green and veiny creature, shattering it. Zarathustra uses her monsters effect, sending two WATER monsters to the graveyard. "Now Mataza, attack her twice and finish the duel." Zarathustra snaps into action. "I activate Dimensional Prison!" And Mataza vanishes in a flash of light. "I told you, you are naïve. Did you seriously think I would just throw the game to you? Thanks for attacking though. You took the bait." Dogma shakes his head. "You can't psyche me out Maya. I set two cards facedown."
ZARATHUSTRA: "I'm not psyching you out. Only cheap idiots do that. I'm doing something much more interesting. I special summon Treeborn Frog from the graveyard." The familiar winged and innocent leaf-green frog sprouts. "Now here comes Swap Frog. I discard a WATER monster to special summon it, I mill a low-level Aqua-Type, and I can bounce a frog to my hand to normal summon an extra, albeit, a frog monster, so I can repeat the cycle." Zarathustra plays through the cycle twice but doesn't return Swap Frog the second time. "I tribute my two monsters to summon Light and Darkness Dragon!" Both frogs vanished and a great dragon, half of its body white, and half black, flew into the air and radiated the field with its spread wings.
"Woah! What kind of deck is this!?" Announcer Maximus boomed. "Zarathustra's using frogs all right but she's just using them as some kind of vehicle for a greater purpose." The audience is genuinely surprised and watches Zarathustra with keen interest.
Dogma also found it odd. When you play an archetype, whether it be Frogs or Gladiator Beasts or Gadgets you play the whole archetype as much as you can. That's just the way they're meant to be. To just use some Frogs to make some cycle out of them was just… weird. It was like that BlueLilly duelist using Rescue Rabbit just to bring out clowns. There was something just wrong with it.
Zarathustra muses, "I guess I'll call this little cycle of mine an engine, since it almost seems to play itself." Dogma says, "Nice job getting out that monster, but sorry. I play Bottomless Trap Hole!" The dragon, however, shielded itself in a white sphere and the trap just vanished. "My Dragon loses 500 ATK each time you play a spell or trap. Now my Dragon, destroy Marauding Captain." The dragon fires a blinding lightning bolt… Dogma activates Sakuresu Armor, only to have it fail like his last one, and his Captain is instantly incinerated. (CaptainDogma LP: 4000 3900)
DrinkingMolotov, who was too busy selling overpriced autographs during his spare time, who couldn't be bothered to watch pathetic low-level duelists duking it out, sticks his nose out to see if anything interesting was happening in the stadium for change. He freezes in shock. The Dark Duelists are banned! There is no way they can be here! He accosts the tournament manager, demanding how banned duelists can enter an official New York City tournament.
"No, they can't be officially registered in the Dueling Network!" Molotov can't believe what the manager is saying. "We banned them and for good reason!"
"Are you sure?" The tall, impeccably trimmed and sharp-suited lawyer Dupre arrives. "Apparently KaibaCorp says otherwise. I am Jones Dupre esquire, practicing lawyer of KaibaCorp NYC, pleased to meet you." He hands Molotov his business card only for Molotov to rip apart.
"You have no authority in this matter! There's no way you can do this!"
"But I can do this. You see, the Dark Duelists took their case to me and let's just say KaibaCorp decided your banning them was a little unfair. And yes, I do have authority in this matter. Specifically, Kaibacorp, the company that has been a part of Duel Monsters since the beginning worldwide, has authority above your pathetic little team. I can override every little decision the Shining Crusaders make. Be lucky that I'm not banning you."
Molotov has no response. He can only stare at the screen showcasing the duels. "The Dark Duelists are growing really strong, really fast. This is bad."
Dogma says, "Nice dueling so far Maya. But I got you right where I want you. Look at your dragon. It's so weak now I can kill it with any monster I choose."
"Look, Zack," Zarathustra says, "You're clearly an intelligent person with a decent personality. Why would you ever support a group like the Shining Crusaders?"
"Why should I not? They stand for every good value in the dueling world, courage, honor, fairness, and respect. They're not like you Dark Duelists, especially not like your amoral leader JC. Matthew is a crises man, Maya. He knows how to keep his team and the great team that is every single duelist in New York City into a strong whole."
"Zack, I must disagree. The Shining Crusaders punish people who don't fit their 'perfect' vision with their authority and power and use those very things to hide from legal accountability. A just ruler has all the power in the world yet restrains to use it except to justly guide his people. The Crusaders are mob bosses who use their power with impunity, not leaders."
"And where is your evidence?" Dogma rebukes, "This is just an attempt by the Dark Duelists to smear the Crusaders. And look at your team. JC and Yukio are delinquents while you and Jolene are pot addicts and thieves. I'm sure you guys had a hard life and came from broken homes but you can rise above the streets and become true duelists.
Zarathustra seriously wonders whether to give anyone the benefit of the doubt anymore. "My team is not the question here, and you seriously think smoking pot is an addiction? I hate to break to you Zack, you're a nice guy but you're unwilling to see the devils beneath the surface. My comrades are no angels but neither are yours. Now make your move already!"
CAPTAIN_DOGMA: "I draw. Now I got you right where I want you." Zarathustra snarks, "Tell me about it." Dogma replies, "OK. I will. I summon Gearfried the Iron Knight!" A warrior entirely encased in black iron armor appeared. "Attack Light and Darkness Dragon!" Gearfried launched itself and with its blades for arms cut off the dragon's head. (Zarathustra LP: 4000 3500) Then from the vapors of its disappearing corpse a mighty purple and gold sea dragon crystalized, Poseidra, the Atlantean Dragon. "Touche," Zarathustra smiles. "Your hand and back row have been drained and I have a huge monster on the field." Dogma grunts and sets 1 card facedown.
ZARATHUSTRA: "I summon Treeborn Frog from my grave. But more are to come. I banish two frogs in my graveyard to summon two Ronintoadin." Two wizened turquoise frogs upright in meditation materialize together. "I tribute Treeborn to summon Sea Lancer, and equip the banished Dupe Frog and Poison Draw Frog to it." A green, scaly serpent with arms wielding a trident appears. "I attack with my two big monsters!"
"I play Mirror Force!" Dogma counters. Zarathustra sneered as Poseidra shattered under its own blast. Sea Lancer remains safe however, for a Poison Draw Frog is destroyed instead, and so Zarathustra draws one card. "But Sea Lancer can still attack." She declares. "Destroy Geafried." And the sea serpent impaled through the knights armor with its spear. (Captain Dogma LP: 3900 3400) Zarathustra set one monster facedown.
The crowd roots for CaptainDogma to pick up his game, to beat back the Dark Duelist from whence she came from, for the Crusaders' sake if not for his own.
CAPTAIN_DOGMA: "Here goes nothing…" Draws. "And the Heart of the Cards rewards my faith! I activate Graceful Charity!" He draws three cards and discards two. "And activate Monster Reborn to summon Gilford the Lightning!" The crowd roars and cheers as a signature card of the legendary Joey Wheeler arrived in a flash of lighting. "Gilford, attack Sea Lancer!" The great warrior sliced through Sea Lancer with its huge sword but only the equipped Dupe Frog bit the dust." (Zarathustra LP: 3500 3000) "No matter how much you push me back I will fight! I will defend the Crusaders!"
ZARATHUSTRA: "It was a good duel Zack but it will end now. Neither your generic advises nor last stands will help you now." Still, Zarathustra pities him as much as she almost hates him. When JC and Jolene dueled they fought people who you could say were on the same side, yet they bickered terribly. Now she duels against someone who downright supports the Crusaders yet they both remain civil. It was as if how you were a Dark Duelist was more important than if you were one.
"Now time to play a Dupe Frog." Dogma says, "But Dupe Frog is in your graveyard, not your hand." To that Zarathustra shoots back, "Speaking of beneath the surface, my graveyard is a second hand. I activate Salvage to retrieve Dupe Frog and Swap Frog to my hand, and I summon Dupe Frog!" A pale blue frog, strangely wearing a graduate cap, surfaces. "I activate Des Croaking, with my two Ronintoadins and Dupe Frog as three substitute Des Frogs! Your whole field is destroyed!" The three frogs croak in unison so loudly as to be a roar. The wave of the sheer force of sound overpowers and kills Gilford.
"I tribute my three frogs to summon from my graveyard Poseidra." The frogs vanish into a mist out of which emerges the purple and golden dragon. "Sea Lancer and Posiedra, finish this!" The two creatures of the deep summon a wave that crashes into Dogma and renders him no more. Zarathustra says to herself, "The true devils are not the big monsters who do terrible deeds but the many little people who aid them."
Zarathustra : 3000 || CaptainDogma: 0
"And the winner is Zarathustra! It seems the weirdoes have won again in this match up!" Some members in the audience were disgruntled, but others clapped for Maya in respect for her unconventional but superb dueling. Maya shook Zack's hand. "Good game." She smiled. "I disagree with you, but I know you are genuine person." Zack was about to say the same thing but before he formed the sentence she was already leaving.
The team rallied up together to share their experiences and stories so far, but hardly could they begin when Molotov stormed in and roared, "Count yourself lucky your lawyer friend here saved you because now you have the privilege of being dead in this tournament! It's time for some new rounds!"
And true to Molotov's word, none of the Dark Duelists stood up against him, except for Yukio who drew against him. By the time the Round Robin was complete everyone else in the team except Yukio took too much of a beating to make it into the finals. Only Yukio, Molotov, and two others won enough points to enter into the tournament tree finals. Yukio and Molotov promptly disposed of the two other finalists, leaving only each other to duel for the final prize, the New York City Cup.
Here was the fulcrum of the tipping scale. If the Dark Duelists secured their first major tournament victory, then values of freedom and creativity would reach all across the city and they would have the first true chance to flourish. If the Shining Crusaders won the Dark Duelists would once more be put in the sidelines and once more would have to struggle just to get by.