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The Grand Tournament

Fanfic Chapter 260: Removed From Play Pt 2: Valkyrie vs. Dragon
Episode Basis: One Step Ahead Pt 2

Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! As everyone got ready to see Zigfried and Leon duke it out for a chance to challenge Yugi, Kaiba intervened and declared the match invalid. He exposed Zigfried for who he really was, Zigfried von Schroeder of the Schroeder Corporation, the 'Uncle' who gave Harold amnesia to begin with. Kaiba decided to duel Zigfried to put him down for good. Zigfried's Remove from Play strategy actually worked for Kaiba as he was able to use it to summon his X-Y-Z monsters to form the XYZ-Dragon Cannon. But with Fortune Chariot which allows Zigfried's monster to attack Kaiba directly and Nibelung's Ring which prevents is Dragon Cannon from attacking, it will be very difficult to beat Zigfried. I'm not sure who to root for on this one, who do you guys recommend?


"Embarrassing you in front of millions of people is more fun than I could imagine," Zigfried exclaimed gleefully.

(Z: 2500)
(K: 1100)

"Come on, Kaiba, wipe that smirk off his face, make him regret ever becoming an egotistical maniac," Harold called.

"Now let the humiliation continue, I invoke the power of Nibelung's Ring. You are forced to draw two cards and if any of them are monsters, they're automatically destroyed!"

"And you think that scares me?" Kaiba asked. "Let's get this over with." The two cards Kaiba drew were Monster Reborn and Attack Guidance Armor. "Looks like you're out of luck, no monsters here. Instead I'll place this card face-down."

"Well, I assume that since you can't do anything else, you end your turn. After all, my ring renders your Dragon Cannon useless!"

"This doesn't look good, guys," Mokuba commented to the others.

"You know what's coming next, right? Valkyrie Zweit, use your Fortune Chariot and attack him directly!"

(VZ: 1600-800)

"I activate my trap card Attack Guidance Armor!" A suit of armor appeared on one of Zigfried's Valkyries. "This redirects your attack to one of your other monsters." Zweit did a U-turn and headed for the Valkyrie wearing the armor.

"I have a little trap of my own," Zigfried said as he activated his Wotan's Judgment. "So my Valkyrie is safe." Zweit pulled the reigns on the horses and stopped the chariot. "How, you ask? Well that's the beauty of Wotan's Judgment, by switching out a magic card in my hand with the top one from my deck, I can end the battle phase of my turn." He placed Nobleman of Crossout on top of his deck and drew another card. "Now let's see if fate was good to me… ah, good, I assembled three of my strongest cards."

"He wouldn't," Harold gasped.

"Oh, he would," Katy confirmed.

"Now help me welcome Goddess Urd's Verdict, Goddess Verdande's Guidance and Goddess Skuld's Oracle!" The three women appeared.

"Those dames are nothing but bad news," Joey commented.

"Yeah, he used those last time," Yugi pointed out. "They almost destroyed your deck!"

"And mine," Harold added.

"Look, that lame strategy may have worked against dorks like Wheeler and Kumara, but I'm in an entire different league."

"Oh, I would have to disagree," Zigfried said. "You are all grouped in the same category: worthless scalawags who's only purpose is for me to wipe my boots on."

"Uh-oh, he's comparing Kaiba to us," Joey said. "I think that was Zigfried's worst move yet."

"Why don't we let my Goddesses judge that by showing the top three cards in your deck. Now, Goddess Skuld, Protector of the Future, show me what destiny holds for Herr Kaiba." The blue-haired woman's eyes flashed orange.

Three Blue-Eyes White Dragons (1) appeared.

Zigfried's eyes paled. It's impossible! I've scoured the Earth and I could never find one yet he found three. Why, what makes him so special that his deck contains three of the most legendary weapons of destruction to ever exist?

"Judging by the look on your face, my destiny's looking really good," Kaiba said.

Still outraged by the revelation, Zigfried replied, "Oh please, you were doomed the moment you decided to duel me. Now I call on Goddess Verdande, Protector of the Present, time for me to guess the top card of your deck. And I'll say it's a monster card."

Kaiba drew the card, "Gee, however did you guess?" He asked sarcastically.

"Just place it on the field in face-down defense position."

"Sure, whatever."

"Now I'll remove that card by correctly guessing its identity. Goddess Urd, Protector of the Past, guide me! I predict that the monster you just played is your Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" The dragon was revealed. Urd's eyes flashed. The dragon let out a roar of pain before disappearing.

"It's gone!" Mokuba gasped.

"Why the long face?" Zigfried asked sarcastically. "Oh yes, I just destroyed your favorite monster." But that's just the beginning, Herr Kaiba. You and your company have been a thorn in my side since the day we met. Now it's time to remove you once and for all!

"I'll take it from here," Kaiba said drawing two cards.

"Hold it," Zigfried called. "How soon we forget, your Dragon Cannon is wearing my ring so that card you drew must go straight to the graveyard." Kaiba showed Zigfried his second Blue-Eyes White Dragon before sliding it into his graveyard. And since you can't attack, I can only assume that you end your turn."

"Well you assume wrong! I play Monster Reborn!"

"You WHAT?"

"Now that monster I just drew comes back to the field. So show yourself, Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" With a roar, the dragon appeared.

"That's what I'm talking about," Mokuba said.

"Go, Blue-Eyes!" Alexis and Atticus cheered.

"In your face, Zig-freak!"

"Nobody comes between me and my Blue-Eyes, especially not a pink-haired mutant freak like you."

"It's not pink, it's lavender!"

"Whatever, time for you to pay the piper!" Blue-Eyes White Dragon fired a blast of lightning which headed straight for the Chariot-bound knight. Valkyrie Zweit was able to leap off back onto her original horse.

(Z: 1100)
(K: 1100)

"What happened?"

"I gave up my Fortune Chariot so my Valkyrie Zweit remains unharmed!"

"But your life points don't. Looks like it's the same old story, Zigfried, I rise to the top while you fall behind me."

"We'll see! I invoke the power of my Goddesses!"

Amara slammed the back of Rebecca's chair. "What is this, a duel or a freaking anime convention?" The others stared at her oddly. She blushed, "I'll shut up now."

The magic card Shrink, Cave Dragon (2) and Luster Dragon #2 appeared. Zigfried had Kaiba place Luster Dragon #2 on top and had it removed from play. "Next I play a magic card known as Gryphon's Feather Duster, now by destroying all the magic and trap cards on my side of the field, I gain 500 life points for each card." His three Goddesses broke apart.

(Z: 2600)
(K: 1100)

"He just got back everything Blue-Eyes took away from him," Mokuba realized.

"And then some," Duke added.

"And then finally I sacrifice my Valkyrie Erste and my Valkyrie Zweit. This lets me summon Valkyrie Brunhilde in defense mode. And by the way, sorry to spoil the surprise, but the card you're going to draw next is a monster card and it won't last long."

"You think I care?" Kaiba asked as he drew a card. "Well I don't."

"Well you should. I activate Nibelung's ring so that monster is destroyed!"

"I didn't need that card anyway, not when I have my Blue-Eyes! White Lightning attack!" As the energy blast struck, Brunhilde held up her shield. As the attack dissipated, Brunhilde was unharmed but her shield was cracked in half.

"As you can see, Brunhilde escapes without a scratch thanks to her special ability. All I have to do is lower her defense points by 1000."

(VB: 2000-1000)

"I place this face-down," Kaiba said laying a magic/trap card. "That ends my turn."

"Another turn wasted!"

"Look, your girlfriend's going to run out of points eventually and when she does, my dragon will be waiting."

"By that point, I would have already won the duel." Zigfried drew a card. "And speaking of winning watch as I win this duel right now! I switch Brunhilde to attack mode. For every dragon monster on the field, Brunhilde gains an additional 300 attack points."

(VB: 1800-2100)

"Next I play Enchanted Sword Nothung!" Brunhilde's sword transformed. "What do you think of my new toy? On second thought, don't answer it just yet, wait till you see what it can do!" Lightning danced out of it and destroyed the Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

The spectators gasped.

"Kaiba's Blue-Eyes is gone!"

"Yeah, but how?"

"Not only does my sword remove all dragons from the game but it also gives my Valkyrie 400 attack points."

(VB: 2100-1800-2200)

"So tell me how it feels to be a washed-up has-been?"

"You tell me."

"Enough small talk," Zigfried said. "I play the magic card Pegasus Wings! Now by cutting Brunhilde's attack points in half, I am given the distinct honor of attacking your life points directly."

(VB: 2200-1100)

"My face-down card will protect me."

"I know your face-down card is Shrink but that won't change my plan one bit. Brunhilde, attack him directly!"

"Go, Shrink card!" Kaiba commanded.

(VB: 1100-550)

Once again, the slash of the Valkyrie's sword created a crescent of energy which struck Kaiba.

(Z: 2600)
(K: 550)

"He just lost half his life points," Mokuba exclaimed.

"Oh how I've dreamt of this day," Zigfried relished. "When the Schroeders would rise up after years of oppression and triumph over their adversaries!"


Our families have been rivals for generations. Us, the long-running prestigious company, you the arrogant upstarts. But things came to a head when your father Gozaburo held a party to show off his new investing skills, and his new sons. Never one to be upstaged, my father also bought children: me, and my sister's children, Harold and Katy. When my father revealed that he was in talks to acquire a multi-million dollar weapons development deal, your father revealed that they already accepted his company. I took this opportunity to test out my own technological skills, secretly inserting a virus into the Kaiba's electrical system. I was proud, Gozaburo would be humiliated and his potential buyers would be driven away.

But my plan was ruined by the last person I would expect to ruin my plan: my own nephew, Harold Kumara, who accidentally (though I doubt it) knocked my watch off with a ball he bought. My plan was further exposed by you.

"This is a remote control, designed to interrupt electrical systems."

"Seems like you have quite the delinquent on your hands, von Schroeder, thanks for coming."

That event was the final straw. My father was driven mad to the point where he could unable to control Schroeder Corp. So I decided to take things in my own hands. First order of business: get rid of Kaiba Corp. I formed an elite group designed to do just that: The Four Horsemen. They would sabotage buildings that would become Kaiba Corp, blackmail potential Kaiba Corp. partners, steal stock away from investors. And it almost succeeded. But then my putrid nephew turned on me and revealed to your father my plan. I wouldn't be able to rest until my sister's worthless mistakes, her children, were removed from the equation. I attacked Harold and left him to die. I then threatened the same thing to his sister if she didn't do whatever I said. With that out of the way, I decided to set it on a rather controversial path: I would transform it into a game development company, a business untapped by any other Fortune 500 company.

Or so I thought.

As I started to lay the foundation for what was to come, my subordinates gave me a message that I didn't want to hear.

"Uh… excuse me, Mister Zigfried, but we just received a disturbing report about the Kaiba Corporation, they have already transformed their company into a gaming company too. As their stock is worth more than ours, they are now the world's largest game development company."

From that moment on, I devoted all my time to game development and one day, I had a brainstorm: holographic monster projection. I succeeded in a landmark invention that would revolutionize the gaming industry! I called it the Schroeder Vision System. And I planned to introduce it to the person who would benefit from it the most: Maximillion Pegasus!

But I was too late, you had already stolen my invention, patented it under some ridiculous name like the Solid Vision System and formed an alliance with Industrial Illusions leaving me with nothing!


"Could that really be true?" Yugi wondered.

"It is," Katy confirmed. "Uncle Zigfried did develop a stand-up holographic projection system with similar physics to Kaiba's own. But there was never any evidence to prove that Kaiba stole his designs from Schroeder Corp. For all I know, it was just a coincidence."

"Your company is already dropping like a rock! Stock shares are at an all time low thanks to that mysterious take over last week. And there is already talk of you being the cause of the monster scare in Domino. And once I beat you at your own game, the whole world will see that the era of Kaiba Corp. is over."

"Oh please, do you really believe that?"

"Of course, in fact I bet the whole world has now turned against you! You are all alone in the world, just as I was!"

"Come on, Kaiba, kick his butt!" A voice called out. Everyone turned to see the source of the voice, Amara. "Knock that blowhard down to size!"

"I know you, Kaiba, you're not giving up that easily," Yugi added.

"Let's go, Rich Boy, knock that bum off his pedestal," called Joey.

"What a twist," Yami said. "Joey cheering for Kaiba."

"Seems like you're wrong as usual, Zigfried. I never stole anything in my life! Everything I got I got through hard work and determination! Two things you know nothing about. So let's duel and I'll show you that I stole nothing!" He drew two cards.

"Don't forget, if either of those cards are monsters, they must be sent to the graveyard." In actuality, the cards Kaiba drew were Graceful Charity and Emergency Provisions, both magic cards.

"Not if I activate this card, Graceful Charity! This allows me to draw three new cards and then get rid of two."

"He avoided Zigfried's magic card!"

"Now I discard these two." Kaiba held out his Blue-Eyes White Dragon and a trap card.

"Your Blue-Eyes, but why?"

Kaiba ignored Zigfried's question, "Next I remove my Blue-Eyes and Pitch-Dark Dragons from the game to summon this, my Chaos Emperor Dragon (3)!"

"So what? My Enchanted Sword slays all dragons!"

"Not this one, my Chaos Emperor Dragon's special ability sends all cards on the field and in our hands to the graveyard."

"That's true," Zigfried admitted. "But you forgot one thing, you must give up 1000 of your life points and I don't think you can afford it!"

"There's nothing I can't afford," Kaiba boasted. "First I set one card face-down and next I activate Emergency Provisions! Now by sending a magic or trap card to the graveyard, I gain back 1000 life points!"

(Z: 2600)
(K: 1550)

"Next I give up 1000 life points to activate my Emperor Dragon's special ability!" The giant dragon let loose with fire which destroyed wiped the field clean.

(Z: 1100)
(K: 550)

Zigfried gasped.

"Once again, you're left with nothing, Zigfried."

"Not for long," Zigfried said furiously as he drew a card.

"Looks like Uncle's losing his cool," Katy commented. "The last person to cause him to do that was you, Harold."

Harold chuckled.

"I play the magic card Pot of Greed so I draw two cards from my deck. Next I play my Magical Alms card. First thing this does is raise my life points by 1000."

(Z: 2100)
(K: 550)

"Next we have to correctly predict the number of magic cards we'll use each turn and we'll each gain 500 life points for each card. But if you use fewer than the number you predict, you take 1000 life points of damage per card which means one mistake and you're through! Now I play the magic card Final Light! Now by giving up 1000 life points, I can summon a monster from my graveyard and I choose Valkyrie Brunhilde!"

(Z: 2100-2600-1600)
(K: 550-1050)

"Of course, you're also able to summon a monster from your graveyard, so what will it be."

"I choose my Cave Dragon!" A burly green dragon appeared.

"Why thank you, Herr Kaiba, your dragon gives my Valkyrie an additional 300 attack points!"

(VB: 1800-2100)

(Z: 1600)
(K: 950)

"So how many magic cards do you think you'll use? You can't afford to be wrong," he said.

"I won't," Kaiba said and drew a card. "I predict I'll use four magic cards this turn!"

"Four? Don't you know you're only holding one?"

(Z: 3600)
(K: 2950)

"That's right, but all that is about to change."

"No, you have to be bluffing!"

"I guess we're about to find out. First I activate Card of Demise! This lets me draw until I'm holding five cards and in five turns I discard my entire hand!"

"Oh no!"

Kaiba took his five cards. "And next I play another magic card, Soul Release! This lets me choose a monster from the graveyard and remove it from the game and I choose my Chaos Emperor Dragon. Then I play my third magic card, Spell Reproduction, now by discarding two magic cards, I can get one back from the graveyard!"

"No, you can't!"

"I just did, now at the cost of 2000 life points, I play Dimension Fusion! This lets us bring back any of our monsters that have been removed from the game!" Luster Dragon #2, Chaos Emperor Dragon, and his three Blue-Eyes White Dragons all appeared. "That gives me five dragons!"

(Z: 3600)
(K: 950)

"How foolish, don't you remember that my Brunhilde gains 300 attack points for every dragon on the field?"

(VB: 2100-3300)

"Luster Dragon #2, attack his Valkyrie Brunhilde now!"

Everyone gasped as the dragon charged forward. Brunhilde leapt up and slashed her sword.

(Z: 3600)
(K: 50)

"He lost a lot of life points," Tea noted.

"Why'd he do that?" Todd asked.

(VB: 3300-3000)

"Look, with one less dragon on the field, his Valkyrie's attack points dropped!" Joey pointed out.

"And now it's my Chaos Emperor Dragon's turn to attack your Valkyrie!" The Chaos Emperor Dragon launched its flames which bounced off Brunhilde's shield and destroyed the dragon.

"Have you forgotten, my Valkyrie has a special ability! By lowering her defense points by 1000, she becomes invincible!"

(VB: 3000-2700, 2000-1000)

"Blue-Eyes White Dragon, it's your turn to attack her!" What was left of Brunhilde's shield was destroyed.

(VB: 1000-0)

(Z: 3300)
(K: 50)

"Your Valkyrie's special powers are all used up," Kaiba told Zigfried. "Which means my second Blue-Eyes White Dragon can wipe her out!" The second dragon's attack totally obliterated the Valkyrie.

(Z: 3000)
(K: 50)

"I'm glad you came, I wouldn't have as much fun publicly humiliating anyone else. Now take it away, Blue-Eyes!" The dragon on Kaiba's far left fired a blast that engulfed Zigfried's podium. Zigfried covered his eyes from the attack.

(Z: 0)
(K: 50)

Zigfried dropped to his knees. "This… isn't… over!" He gasped.

"Face it, your life points reached 0, that's about as over as it gets. Now take what little dignity you have left and get lost!"

Mokuba let out a whoop, "Oh yeah, he's gone!"

"Let's hope so," Yugi muttered.

The End


Duel Monster Database

(1)
Name: Blue-Eyes White Dragon
Level: 8
Type: Dragon
Attribute: Light
ATK: 3000
DEF: 2500

(2)
Name: Cave Dragon
Level: 4
Type: Dragon/Effect
Attribute: Wind
ATK: 2000
DEF: 100

(3)
Name: Chaos Emperor Dragon (Chaos Emperor Dragon – Envoy of the End)
Level: 8
Type: Dragon/Effect
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 3000
DEF: 2500