Chapter 14: Cinderella's Horn

"Riding Duel... Acceleration!"

"Here we go, everyone! Listen to our song!"

[Ranka 4000 LP / Emi 4000 LP]

Ranka gunned the engine of Yusei's D-Wheel, and it took off like a rocket. She now understood why they seemed to emphasize "Acceleration" during riding duels. She had a moped which she used for deliveries for Nyan Nyan, but this D-Wheel was on a whole new level. If her moped had the equivalent thrust of a VF-25F Messiah, then this D-Wheel would be the mile-long assault carrier, Battle Frontier.

"I'll start!" Ranka announced as she entered Turn 1. "I summon Meltran Warrior Klan in Attack Mode! [Lv 4, ATK 1800] By Klan's effect, I'll add Galactic Fairy to my hand. I set two cards face down and end my turn."

"My turn... First, when you control a monster and I do not, I can Special Summon Vice Dragon from my hand by halving it's stats. [Lv 5, ATK 1000] Now, I'll release Vice Dragon to Summon Cthonian Emporer Dragon in Attack Mode. [Lv 6, ATK 2400] Cthonian Emporer Dragon, attack Klan!"

"Trap card, open! Negate Attack! This negates your dragon's attack and ends the Battle Phase."

"I set one card face down and end my turn."

"Draw! I summon SMS - Michael the Sharpshooter in Attack Mode! [Lv 4, ATK 1400] By halving Michael's ATK, he can attack your Life Points directly! Michael, take aim and fire!" The sniper rifle's stabilizers flared open and the rifle fired. The shot missed Cthonian by an inch, striking Emi's D-Wheel. [Emi -700 LP 3300 LP] "I switch Klan to Defense Mode and end my turn."

"My turn. I'll re-summon Cthonian Emporer Dragon, activating it's Gemini effect! Now my dragon can attack twice in the same Battle Phase!"

"Cthonian Emporer, attack Klan!"

"Now, Cthonian Emporer, attack Michael!" The VF-25G exploded under the crimson fire. [Ranka -1000 LP 3000 LP]

"Trap card, open! Diamond Crevasse! Klan never forgave the Vajra for killing Michael, and she won't fogive you now! When SMS - Michael the Sharpshooter is destroyed, by removing both Michael and Klan in my Graveyard from play, I can summon SMS - Zero-Suit Klan from my Deck!" [Lv 7, ATK 2500]

"I set two cards face-down and end my turn."

"My turn! Now, I activate Zero-Suit Klan's effect. By removing one of it's three counters, I can destroy a card on your field, and I choose your center face-down! Now, Klan, attack Cthonian Emporer!"

"Activate Trap, Dimesional Prison! This removes from play a monster that declares an attack! Sorry, Klan."

"When Zero-Suit Klan is removed from the field, I can Special Summon Michael and Klan to my side of the field."

"Pfft..."

"I'll summon SMS - Luca the Clairvoyant in Defense Mode [Lv 4, DEF 1700] and end my turn."

"Draw... Cthonian Emporer, attack Klan and Michael again. I summon Masked Dragon in Defense Mode [Lv 3, DEF 1100] and end my turn."

"My turn. I activate Luca's effect. I discard Fold Quartz to summon a Ghost token on my side of the field [Lv 1, DEF 500]. When Fold Quartz is discarded for the effect of an SMS monster, I can Special Summon it to my side of the field. [Lv 1, DEF 100]. Now, I tune my Lv 1 Fold Quartz with my Lv 1 Ghost Token. Synchro Summon! SMS - Fold Booster! [Lv 2, DEF 500]"

"You must be nuts... Cthonian Emporer will smash your pitiful defenses... You would've been better off not performing that Synchro Summon..."

"Oh? I may not have dueled much, but I know all the secrets of this deck, even one's Alto doesn't know of... If you think I was wrong for Synchro Summoning, then prove me wrong... I set three cards face-down and end my turn."

"My turn."

"Here we go! Fold Booster, propel us forward to the speed of Fold Travel... and the speed of... Accel Synchro!" Ranka disappeared into the Fold portal created by Fold Booster.

"Yamato, Gotengo, open fire on Cosmic Horror Gangi'el!" Akiza ordered the solid-vision warships. Yamato fired it's main deck guns while Gotengo fired it's maser cannon. Gangi'el's skin boiled, and then the beast exploded from the energy of the attack.

"The way she commands these warships on the battlefield... It's amazing..." Monica mused.

"I was thinking the same thing," Capt. Wilder added. He gestured for Lum to come close enough to hear him whisper. "I want a contract for her to be a battle strategist on my desk by the time this battle is over. Brilliant tacticians like this come once in a lifetime."

"Aye, sir. Right away."

"Accel Synchro? What the hell..." Emi's D-Wheel shuddered by the pulsations created by Ranka defolding.

"Accel Synchro monster: Brera, the Guardian of Last Frontier!" [Lv 6; ATK 2500] The crimson VF-27 appeared in place of the Fold Booster and Luca. "With Brera at my side, the Field Spell Last Frontier is forced into play on top of Speed World 2."

"Last Frontier, set on," each player's D-Wheel announced. The pair became surrounded by a solid-vision space scene. A few asteroids were scattered around. Below the two duelists was a planet that looked similar to Earth.

"Dammit..." Emi swore. She glanced down at her Speed Counters, noticing she had seven. She was in a slight bind now, but Speed World 2 could change things quickly. "Activate Speed Wor-"

"Activate Continuous Trap, Cruise Control! With this neither player can gain or loose Speed Counters, meaning you cannot activate Speed World 2's effect to pay Speed Counters for an effect."

"Goddamn you... I summon Red-Eyes Wyvern in Defense Mode [Lv 4; DEF 1300] and end my turn."

"Draw! I'll start by activating the Trap Card Friendly Fire. With this, I can Special Summon an SMS monster from my hand whose ATK is lower than the ATK of a monster I control, but the Summoned monster will be destroyed during the End Phase. So, take the field, SMS - Alto the Messiah!" The white and red valkyrie appeared in battroid mode next to Brera. "Now, I activate the Trap Equipment Booster. At the cost of 500 Life Points, I can equip an Equip Card from Deck and equip it to a monster I control, so I choose Fold Speakers and equip it to Alto." Alto transformed to gerwalk mode and 4 large speakers appeared mounted beneath the valkyries wings.

"Now with Fold Speaker's effect," Ranka continued. "When it's activated, it places one of the Super-Dimensional idols on my side of the field. So, appear now, Super-Dimensional Cinderella. Now, I'll fuse my Alto the Messiah and my Super-Dimensional Cinderella!"

"Fusing a Monster with a Continuous Spell? Are you nuts?" Alto the Messiah broke apart, forming a suit of armor around the Super-Dimensional Cinderella.

"Our hearts are like fireworks, shooting off arrows of light! Fusion Summon! Rapidly ascend, SMS - Two Hearts as One - Ranka Valkyrie! [Lv 8; ATK ?]

Ranka Valkyrie's ATK is equal to it's Level times 400, [ATK 3200] and it's raises the ATK of all other SMS monster's ATK by 200 times their Level. And since Ranka Valkyrie counts as Super-Dimensional Cinderella, Brera is treated as an SMS monster, so his ATK is raised the 3700! And now, since 2 SMS monster's are removed from play, Last Frontier's effect kicks in raising the ATK of all SMS monsters by 400. [Brera ATK 4100, Ranka Val ATK 3600]

Brera, attack Cthonian Emporer! [Emi - 1700 LP 1600] And now, Ranka Valkyrie destroys Red-Eyes Wyvern! I set 1 card face-down, and with that, I end my turn."

"My turn! I'll start by activating the Trap Call of the Haunted to revive my Red-Eyes Wyvern in Attack Mode [Lv 4, ATK 1800], then I'll activate the Trap Zero Gravity, which switches all Attack Position monsters to Defense Position and vice-versa. Now, I summon Hyper Synchron in Attack Mode [Lv 4; ATK 1600] and tune it with my Red- Eyes Wyvern!

The ruler's heartbeats begin now! Bear witness to its creation-shaking power! Synchro summon! My very soul, Red Demon's Dragon! [Lv 8, ATK 3000]

When Hyper Synchron is used a the Tuner for a Dragon-type Synchro, that monster gains 800 ATK! [ATK 3800] Now, Red Demon's Dragon, attack Brera! Absolute Power Force! Oh, and when Red Demon's attacks a Defense Position monster, it destroys all Defense Position monsters on your field, so say goodbye to your Ranka Valkyrie as well!"

"Activate Ranka Valkyrie's effect! When she's removed from the field while she's considered a Monster Card, I can move her to a Spell & Trap Card Zone and have her be treated as a Continuous Spell!"

"Goddamit... I end my turn."

"I draw, and now it's time to end this!" Ranka smirked as she glanced at the card she drew. "First, I'll start by activating Ranka Valkyrie's effect! During my Standby Phase, while she's in my Spell & Trap Card Zone, I can pay 1200 Life Points to Special Summon it to my field! [Ranka - 1200 LP 1800 LP] I activate the Speed Spell Angel Baton. I draw 2 cards, then discard 1. Now, I'll activate the Trap Roll Out to select the SMS - Tornado Pack I just discarded and equip it to my Ranka Valkyrie! And now, I fuse my SMS - Tornado Pack and my Ranka Valkyrie, which counts as Alto the Messiah to form SMS - Tornado Messiah! [Lv 10, ATK 3300] Ranka Valkyrie moves back to the Spell & Trap Card Zone by it's effect, so it's effect is still in play, which increases the ATK of all other SMS monsters by 200 x their own Level, boosting Tornado Messiah to 5300 ATK!"

Emi laughed. "Even with 5300 ATK, your Tornado Messiah won't be able to finish me off, because I'll still have 100 Life Points left after the attack and Red Demon's will remain on the field because of Hyper Synchron'seffect! And next turn I will surely defeat you!"

"That's why I'm not letting you have your next turn! Tornado Messiah, attack Red Demon's Dragon and activate your effect! When Tornado Messiah attacks a monster, I can remove an SMS monster in my Graveyard from play to switch the attack target to face-down Defense Position, and when Tornado Messiah attacks a face-down Defense Position monster, that monster is removed from play, and you take damage equal to half of the destroyed monster's ATK! Go, Tornado Messiah! Tornado Cannon!"

The twin cannons mounted along Tornado Messiah's back directed themselves at Red Demon's Dragon and opened fire, unleashing a brilliant blaze of blue energy. Red Demon's Dragon card turned face-down, then disappeared into a void created by the cannon's shear dimension-ripping power. [Emi -1900 LP 0 LP]

Steam poured out of the front of Emi's D-Wheel as it ground to a halt. Slowly, the surrounding duel monster spirits began to fade away as the dimensions seperated. The rest of Skull Squadron and Acela Squadron landed in the infield of the Kaiba Dome's race track.

"Lt. Pitts, you are under arrest. You are being charged with violating Article 107 of the New U.N. Spacy charter by your actions of attacking a neutral planet without receiving provocation or a declaration of war. Have fun at your second court martial, bitch."

"I strongly believe that if it weren't for the acts of SMS, Neo Domino City would not have been able to overcome this catastrophe," Ralph Sexton spoke into the video phone. "And I thank you also, becuase relinquishing SMS's contract was by no means obligatory and the funds we've received to rebuild are more than we could've ever imagined. If there's anything... Anything... we can do to repay this debt, we'd be glad to oblidge."

"Well," Catherine Glass sighed. "I think there is one thing that every citizen of Frontier will agree with me on..."