Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.
Chapter 14: High Priest of Zott
Jaden and the others ran as quickly as they could towards the main building of the academy. Overhead, the overcast sky continued to occasionally rumble with thunder. It seemed very clear that something bad was about to happen. The whole way over, Jaden and his companions noticed that the students and teachers they saw outside seemed oblivious to what was going on, almost as if they were in some kind of trance. After only a few minutes of running, the group finally arrived at the rear entrance to the school, only to find Principle Mackenzie blocking their path.
"Ah, Mr. Yuki." Principle Mackenzie greeted. "I had a feeling you would show up here. I knew that David wouldn't be strong enough to defeat you."
"Wait, Principle Mackenzie is in on this too?" a surprised Sheila asked.
"He has been from the beginning." Reggie confirmed. "Ever since that day."
"You better let us through, Principle Mackenzie!" Jaden told him.
"I'm afraid that there's only one way for all of you to pass." Principle Mackenzie spoke. "And that is for one of you to defeat me in a duel."
"Fine! Then I'll…" Jaden began, but Reggie raised her hand in front of him to cut him off.
"I'll duel you!" Reggie agreed.
"What? You dare to go against you own father?" a somewhat angered Principle Mackenzie spoke.
"You haven't been a father to me in years." Reggie retorted. "Not since that wretched woman twisted your mind."
"Mac, are you sure about this?" Jaden asked.
"You're still recovering from your duel with David." Reggie pointed out. "If we're going to beat that witch, we'll need you at your best. Besides, I still owe you for what you did for me before."
"Mac, maybe I should take this duel." A concerned Atticus suggested. "I mean… this could be real dangerous."
"Thanks, Rhodie. But this is my fight." Reggie replied. "If anyone's going to defeat the monster that my dad's become, it's me."
"To think that you would disrespect you own father in this way." Principle Mackenzie spoke. "The Supreme King truly has poisoned you mind. Be that as it may, as a duelist I cannot turn down your challenge."
With that, Reggie and their father both activated their duel disks. Jaden and the others watched as the two drew their opening hands.
"As your father and principle of this academy, I shall go first." Principle Mackenzie declared as he drew his first card. "I summon Pyramid Turtle in Defense Mode!" A tan tortoise with an Egyptian crown and a pyramid for a shell appeared on the battlefield. "Next I shall set two cards on the field and end my turn."
"So Principle Mackenzie plays a Zombie deck?" Jaden observed from the sidelines.
"I guess so." Sheila replied. "I've never seen Principle Mackenzie duel before."
"He is the principle of a duel academy." Tabitha pointed out. "He probably didn't get this position simply for his administrative skills."
Reggie drew her first card. "I activate Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen!" an ornate throne room appeared behind Reggie. "With this card, I can summon a Fairy-type monster from my hand when I have no other monsters on the field. So I summon Shatiel in Defense Mode!"
Appearing on Reggie's side of the battlefield in a kneeling position was a muscular male warrior with silver hair and a pair of white angelic wings. He was clad in white and gold armor and carried a large round golden shield.
"As long as Shatiel is on the field, all my Fairy monsters gain 400 ATK and DEF." Reggie continued. "Next I summon Iofiel in Attack Mode!"
Materializing next to Shatiel was a humanoid figure with large white-feathered wings on its back. Its body was clad almost completely in white and gold armor, and a strange white mask completely covered its face.
"When Iofiel is summoned to the field, I can send a level one Fairy from my deck to the Graveyard to have Iofiel gain 1000 ATK!" Reggie announced. "So I send Zeriel to the Graveyard and raise Iofiel's ATK to 2400!"
"Impressive. She summoned a monster with 2400 ATK in just one turn." Tabitha observed.
"Yeah, but I don't think it's such a good idea for her to attack with those two face-down cards on the field." Sheila pointed out.
"This is kind of what I was afraid of." Atticus spoke. "I'm not sure Mac is thinking straight enough to win this duel. She could be walking right into a trap if she attacks now."
"I'm sure she knows what she's doing." Jaden assured him.
"Atticus does have a point." Yubel told Jaden as she appeared. "I'm sure Mackenzie's set up some kind of trap, but it may not be those face-down cards."
"You think Pyramid Turtle's the trap?" Jaden quickly deduced.
Yubel nodded. "If Reggie attacks, she could be playing right into her father's hands."
"I equip Iofiel with Fairy Meteor Crush, allowing it to inflict battle damage when destroying a monster in Defense Mode!" Reggie announced. "Iofiel, attack Pyramid Turtle! Angel Wing Strike!"
Iofiel flew at full speed across the battlefield and slammed its right wing hard into the pyramid on the turtle's back. The pyramid crumbled and the turtle collapsed into a pile of sand and blew away. Principle Mackenzie's life points dropped to 3000.
"When Pyramid Turtle is destroyed in battle, I can summon a Zombie-type monster with 2000 or less DEF from my deck. I now summon Double Coston!" Principle Mackenzie announced. A black blob-like creature with stubby arms and beady eyes appeared on the field.
"I end my turn." Reggie announced.
Principle Mackenzie drew his next card. "Double Coston's effect allows me to use it as two tributes for a Dark attribute monster. So I sacrifice Double Coston to summon The Supremacy Sun!"
Double Coston divided in half to create a second blob-like monster. A pillar of golden light that shot up from the ground consumed both creatures, burning them to ash. In moments, the pillar of light faded to reveal The Supremacy Sun.
"That's… another Planet monster!" a stunned Shiela quickly realized. "Just like The Big Saturn and Reggie's Splendid Venus."
"To think that all three members of the Mackenzie family would have three of the cards from that series." An equally surprised Tabitha remarked.
"With The Sun on the field, I activate a Spell known as Solar Advent!" Principle Mackenzie announced. "This card lets me bring the Ritual Spell, Divine Prominence and the monster it summons to my hand. Now I activate Divine Prominence and use The Supremacy Sun as the entire tribute to summon The Divinity Sun!"
A large portal opened up behind Principle Mackenzie to reveal a large golden pyramid with a floating capstone. A beam of light shot down from the capstone and struck The Sun in the back. With a massive explosion of golden light, the wicked solar deity changed into his divine form. After that, the portal behind Mackenzie closed.
"In order for Divinity Sun to attack, I must discard one card from my hand." Principle Mackenzie announced. "So I discard Thousand-Eyed Ghost so that The Sun can attack Iofiel! Divine Ray!"
A massive beam of golden light shot forth from the center of The Sun's chest and instantly vaporized Iofiel. The beam continued on and struck Reggie, knocking her to the ground. When the attack ended, Reggie's life points had fallen to 1600.
"It's not too late to save yourself, Reggie." Principle Mackenzie told her. "Surrender and join me, and together we can reign supreme in the glorious new age of Zott as father and daughter."
"And just what kind of twisted age are you and Electra trying to create?" Atticus demanded to know.
"It will be an age where the human race will learn new ways of pleasure and destruction!" Mackenzie declared. "And once Lord Zott revives, I shall reign as his high priest! There is no greater honor, and that glory can be yours too, Reggie. All you have to do is end this duel and join me."
"You really have become twisted." Reggie responded with hate-filled eyes as she rose to her feet. "I'd never join a monster like you or that woman!"
"So be it. This duel shall be your end." Principle Mackenzie replied. "I end my turn!"
Suddenly The Divinity Sun rose backward into the air and disappeared behind a mass of thick dark clouds. Soon after, Pyramid Turtle and Thousand-Eyed Ghost appeared on the battlefield.
"Huh? What just happened?" a confused Sheila wondered. "Why did Principle Mackenzie's monster vanish and those two undead monsters appear?"
"At the end of each of my turns, The Divinity Sun sends itself to the Graveyard to signal the fall of night." Principle Mackenzie explained. "When that happens, I can summon two other monsters from my Graveyard in Defense Mode."
"A 4000 ATK monster that goes to the Graveyard and replaces itself with two weak monsters?" Sheila spoke with a raised eyebrow. "Weird."
"There's probably more to Mackenzie's monster than we know about." Jaden pointed out.
"One thing's for sure, Mackenzie's left himself a pretty good wall to hide behind." Yubel observed. "Pyramid Turtle and Thousand-Eyed Ghost can both replace themselves with other monsters from the deck."
Reggie drew her next card. "First I activate the Spell, Pot of Greed and draw two more cards. Then I activate Monster Reborn and summon Iofiel from the Graveyard!" The destroyed angelic warrior reappeared on the battlefield. "Now I sacrifice both Iofiel and Shatiel to summon my strongest monster! Descend to the field, Splendid Venus!"
A pillar of golden light that shot up from the ground quickly consumed both of Reggie's monsters. The light quickly faded to reveal a familiar four-winged angel clad in robes of golden armor. Splendid Venus gave off a golden light that illuminated the battlefield.
"Venus, destroy Thousand-Eyed Ghost!" Reggie commanded. "Holy Feather Shower!"
Venus flapped her wings and sent a barrage of white feathers towards the other side of the battlefield. Thousand-Eyed Ghost was struck by the barrage and exploded in a flash of white light.
"When Thousand-Eyed Ghost is sent to the Graveyard, I can summon a monster of level four or below from my deck!" Principle Mackenzie announced. "I summon a second Thousand-Eyed Ghost in Defense Mode!" A second floating ball of eyes wrapped in bandages appeared on the battlefield.
"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Reggie announced.
Suddenly a ray of golden light came down from the sky and shined on Principle Mackenzie's side of the battlefield. Both Thousand-Eyed Ghost and Pyramid Turtle caught on fire and burned to ash. The Divinity Sun came down from the light of hover above the field. At the same time, Principle Mackenzie glowed with a golden aura and his life points rose to 5000.
"No way! The Divinity Sun is back?" a shocked Atticus exclaimed.
"And it destroyed Principle Mackenzie's two monsters!" Tabitha observed.
"What is this?" Reggie demanded to know.
"At the beginning of each of my turns, The Divinity Sun rises from the Graveyard to signal the dawn." Principle Mackenzie explained. "When that happens, The Sun's divine light burns away the creatures of the night that exist on my side of the field, and I gain life points equal to their combined original ATK. Also, since Thousand-Eyed Ghost was sent to the Graveyard, I now summon Royal Keeper from the deck in Defense Mode to take its place."
Appearing on Mackenzie's side of the battlefield was a slender Egyptian mummy with a broken gold mask that revealed the left side of its decaying face. In its bony hands it carried a simple spear and a golden shield.
"I now activate a Continuous Trap, Blessings of the Sun!" Principle Mackenzie announced. "Once during a turn when a Ritual Monster is summoned from the Graveyard, I can draw two more cards from my deck. Now I discard Lich Lord, King of the Underworld to allow The Divinity Sun to attack Splendid Venus! Divine Ray!"
"I activate a Trap, Negate Attack!" Reggie quickly announced. "Venus isn't going anywhere!"
The Sun fired another beam of golden light from his chest. But before it could hit, the beam was sucked into a vortex that appeared in front Venus.
Principle Mackenzie smirked. "It seems you've bought yourself a little more time. I'll end my turn here. With the end of my turn, The Sun sets and I summon Lich Lord and Thousand-Eyed Ghost in his place."
The Sun rose backwards into the sky and vanished behind a mass of dark clouds. After the solar deity vanished, Thousand-Eyed Ghost and a brown skeleton with black-feathered wings and a red hooded cloak appeared on the battlefield.
Reggie drew her next card. "Splendid Venus, attack Lich Lord! Holy Feather Shower!"
"I activate a Continuous Trap, Ever-Living Undead!" Principle Mackenzie announced. "While this card is on the field, Zombie-type monsters can't be destroyed in battle!"
Venus flapped her wings and showered Mackenzie's side of the battlefield with a barrage of white feathers. The feather storm stuck Lich Lord and began to explode in flashes of white light. But when the attack ended, the living skeleton was intact, though smoke was rising from his body.
"This is a pretty good strategy Mackenzie has set up." Yubel remarked to Jaden. "Each time that sun god of his leaves the field, it replaces itself with a pair of monsters that Mackenzie can use with a wall. And now thanks to Ever-Living Undead, that wall is practically indestructible."
"Yeah, and when Mackenzie starts his turn, Divinity Sun comes back and destroys those wall monsters to give his wall a major boost." Jaden added. "Plus he can use Thousand-Eyed Ghost to give himself an extra monster for the next time The Sun comes back.
"Not only that, Blessings of the Sun lets him draw extra cards to reload his hand, making sure that The Sun can attack." Yubel added. "And The Sun's discard cost allows him load his Graveyard with more monsters he can use as a wall and boost his life points."
"The whole time, Mackenzie's life points keep getting higher." Jaden finished. "Which makes him a lot harder to beat. I'm not sure how Reggie can get out of this."
"It's not a strategy without weakness." Yubel pointed out. "All those extra draws and deck summons means there's a chance he could run out of cards. Or The Divinity Sun could get removed from the duel. The problem is I'm not sure Reggie can last long enough for either of those things to happen."
"I set one card on the field and end my turn!" Reggie announced.
A ray of golden light shined down onto Mackenzie's side of the battlefield and incinerated his three monsters. The Divinity Sun descended to the battlefield and Principle Mackenzie shined with a golden aura as his life points rose to 9800.
"With the destruction of Thousand-Eyed Ghost, I summon a second Royal Keeper from my deck in Defense Mode!" Principle Mackenzie announced. A second spear-carrying mummy in a broken golden mask appeared on the field. "I activate the effect of Blessings of the Sun and draw two more cards! Now I discard Three-Eyed Ghost so that Divinity Sun can attack Splendid Venus! Divine Ray!"
"I activate my Trap, Waboku!" Reggie announced. "During this turn, Venus can't be destroyed and I take no damage from this battle!"
The Sun fired another intense beam of light at Venus. But a barrier of multicolored light blocked the attack.
"Well played, you're only postponing the inevitable." Principle Mackenzie confidently told her. "Despite your struggles, there is no way you can stand against my supreme power. Eventually you will meet your doom."
Author's Note: Originally, I had planned for Reggie and Atticus to team up and duel Principle Mackenzie together. But I couldn't decide on what deck Atticus would use. I had a hard enough time figuring out how Principle Mackenzie's strategy in the duel was going to work. Plus tag duels and asymmetrical duels are kind of a pain to write. So I just decided to have Reggie take on her father by herself.
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