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Ed: 4000
Judai: 4000

"Well, since you're clearly distracted, I'll go first!" Ed said, drawing his card. "I'll start this off with Double Fusion! This lets me call out my Elemental Hero Phoenix Enforcer by paying 500 life points and sending Avian and Burstinatrix to the graveyard, followed immediately after by my Sparkman, in order to form my Shining Phoenix Enforcer!" (Atk 2500)

Ed: 3500
Judai: 4000

"Wait, Shining Phoenix Enforcer?" I asked.

I'd always heard that other kingdoms had different cards, and I'd already seen a few examples. But, now, I was seeing the different Elemental Heroes they had. When I fused those monsters, I always summoned Shining Flare Wingman. But Ed had called out a different monster, one with green skin and shining metal wings.

"Judai! Are you saying you didn't know!?" Asuka exclaimed. "It's the Kalmar form of Shining Flare Wingman!"

"But, Aniki! Gorisuke mentioned that card! 'That fake Phoenix Enforcer's cool!' Remember!?" Sho asked.

I sweat. "Oh, uh…right."

All those on the sidelines fainted in one collective thud. Yeah, yeah, so I was kind of slow.

Manjoume shot up, followed immediately by Yubel. Both were glaring at me.

"You idiot!" Manjoume snapped. "How can you not know that!? You've been in Kalmar this whole time! And I've already mentioned that thing to you, too! I asked if yours had an effect that was better! Ring any bells!?"

Okay, okay! Sheesh!

"Not to mention you should study your enemies so you can think like they do!" Yubel added, trying to drag political intrigue into this. "Are you really that stupid!?"

Ed's reaction was a lot tamer. He just stood there, looking disgusted, with his eyes closed.

Yeah, yeah. So I didn't pay a lot of attention. Sue me. I just laughed, not one to let that sort of thing get me down.

"Great," Ed said, annoyed. "May I complete my turn now? Or do you want to wait until SORA's finished with its brainwashing mission?"

Well, way to put me in my place.

"Uh, r-right! Go ahead."

Ed stared for a second, then said, "Right. I play two cards face down and end my turn. Try to stay focused during yours, please. We don't have all year."

"Okay! Draw!" I pulled my card and glanced at it, then said, "I activate Polymerization! And I'll use it to fuse Elemental Hero Wildheart with Necroshade! Come on out, Necroid Shaman!" (Atk 1900)

My two heroes fused, creating a muscular hero with long red hair and tribal tattoos.

"Now for his effect! When he's summoned, I can destroy one of your monsters, but you get a replacement from your graveyard."

"Yes! He got rid of Ed's Shining Phoenix Enforcer before Ed could use it!" Asuka cheered.

Johan threw a paw up into the air. "Go, Judai! You can do it!"

"So say goodbye to Shining Phoenix Enforcer! Summon Avian from your graveyard."

Necroid Shaman destroyed Shining Phoenix Enforcer, and Ed replaced him with the green-feathered hero Avian.

"But, by removing my Shining Phoenix Enforcer from the field, you've activated my D-Time trap!" Ed said, flipping a card with a teacup on it. "I get to add a Destiny Hero from my deck to my hand whose level is lower than the Elemental Hero you just took out!"

Okay, that got my attention!

"D-Hero, huh?"

Everyone kept mentioning those cards, and I was finally getting a chance to see them! This was awesome!

"I take the level 6 D-Hero Double Dude from my deck and add him to my hand! Hurry up and finish your move so I can show you what true heroism is about!" Ed said, giving me an annoyed glare.

Wow. Really? Ah, well. No reason to get worked up about something so small.

"Necroid Shaman, attack his Avian!" I commanded.

"Not so fast! Since you brought back my Elemental Hero, I'm allowed to activate my Hero Shield!"

Oh. Well, I walked right into that one.

"Not bad," Misawa said. "First Ed played D-Time in anticipation that his hero would be destroyed, then he was prepared to defend his field, should an E-Hero still exist this turn!"

"That's a pro for ya! Always one step ahead," Johan said.

"And you're smiling, why?" Yubel asked him with a glare.

Heh. Yeah, he and I were really alike. Johan sweat and rubbed his head, laughing awkwardly. Yubel shook her head in disgust, the same way she always did with me.

"A pro prepares for all possibilities, Prince Johan! Anything could happen in a duel," Ed said.

Well said, Ed.

"Not bad," I admitted. "Guess I end my turn."

"Heh. That's it? And you call yourself a duelist," Ed taunted.

As if I hadn't heard that one before.

Ed drew his card, getting serious again. "My turn, then! I sacrifice my Elemental Hero Avian and summon Double Dude in attack mode!" (Atk 1000)

Double Dude appeared, a guy in a black suit and hat. He was carrying a cane, and there was a scarf wrapped around the lower half of his face. Double Dude…as in D-Hero Double Dude, the monster he'd just added to his hand!

"So that's a D-Hero, huh?" I asked, excitement taking over.

"Quit acting so pathetic!" Ed snapped at me. "This isn't kid stuff! It's a serious matter!"

"Geez, no need to bite my head off," I said. I mean, I was just having fun. What was the harm in that?

"Then get serious! The fate of the world is at stake here! Look at my hero!" He pointed at Double Dude, demanding, "Does he look amused!? My heroes know what a burden it is having to take responsibility for others!"

That so? And the crown prince of Neospace didn't?

I blinked, not sure what he or his monsters would know about that sort of burden. "Uh…okay…"

"A true hero understands the weight they have to bear! That's why you can't be the hero! You don't know how difficult a hero's life is! And I'll prove it with this spell card! Dark City! A fitting battle field for a scarred hero!"

"Dark City?" I asked.

"Yes. Dark City. A city filled with crime and violence. A place where heroes are constantly on call, 24/7. They never get a break or have time to rest. Day in, day out, they fight until their bodies are scarred and sore. And, yet, they continue to do so because the people need them. They don't have time to sit around and admire some useless trophies or watch TV. Their lives are for the people, and that's all they live for! A true hero carries this burden their entire life! And they use it to motivate themselves to keep going, no matter what. So if an enemy is stronger than them, all they have to do is use their burdens to give them additional strength! That's the D-Hero's Dark City! They get 1000 points of power when attacking a tougher opponent!"

Whoa… Was he serious? And why did he sound a bit like one of my tutors? I mean, not that I'd been told this about a "true hero" before, but I'd always been told by my tutors and parents that a good king needed to put their people's needs above his own and always consider the well-being of others when making decisions. But the way he was talking about it, like it was a never-ending struggle against evil…

"You've got a pretty grim outlook on life, don't you?" I said.

It's true. He did have a grim outlook on life.

"What?" he asked.

"Never mind," I said. "Just take your turn."

Ed stared at me for a second, then brushed me off. "I attack with my Double Dude! And, since Dark City's out and he's weaker than your monster, he gains another 1000 attack points!"

"Just like Skyscraper…" I said.

The D-Heroes and E-Heroes seemed to have a few things in common.

Double Dude hit my monster, his attack rising just enough to win.

Ed: 3500
Judai: 3900

"Now, due to Double Dude's effect, he can attack twice!"

"What!?"

Okay, I guess I should have seen that coming with a name like Double Dude. But still. His second attack was unexpected, and he hit me directly.

Ed: 3500
Judai: 2900

"That ends my turn."

"Judai! You moron!" Yubel snapped. "What was that!? Ever heard of defending yourself!? Focus!"

Well, Yubel was being critical, but what else was new? She always was!

"Yes! Please do!" Ojin agreed. "I don't want to be a satellite forever!"

"Or an old man forever! Ow! Oh, that's just wrong…"

For the guy holding his back, I would gladly have pointed out that he would, someday, be an old man. That is, if I didn't have more important things to worry about, like the fact that I needed to win, or the fact that everyone was trying to tell me how to duel again.

I sighed and muttered, "Again with the backseat dueling…"

"Well, duel better, and we won't care!" Yubel answered.

Yeah, like I'd ever duel well enough for her to keep her mouth shut.

"Draw," I said, pulling a card from my deck. "I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman!" (Atk 1600)

Sparkman appeared, ready for battle.

"Sparkman, attack his Double Dude!"

Like Skyscraper, Dark City only raised the monster's attack power when it was attacking, not when it was attacked. Double Dude's attack stayed at 1000, and Sparkman easily wiped him out with a burst of electricity. And, with that, we were tied.

Ed: 2900
Judai: 2900

Seeing as Yubel would never let me live it down if I didn't defend myself somehow (and I actually could this turn), I slid a card into my duel disk and said, "I play one card face down. Turn end."

"My move!" Ed said, drawing his card. "First off, Judai, because you destroyed my Double Dude last turn, I now get two Double Dude Tokens!"

Two tokens that looked exactly like Double Dude appeared, with 1000 attack points each.

"Now I play Pot of Greed and draw two cards! Then I summon my D-Hero Doom Lord!" (Atk 600)

Okay, so, with Dark City, his monster's attack would rise to 1600, making it equal to Sparkman's power. So…

I blinked. "Okay? So are you aiming for a suicide strike? Or does he have some sort of effect you plan to use?"

"Hmph. Who do you think I am?" Ed asked. "Of course there's an effect! Like this. I activate my Doom Lord's effect to remove your Sparkman from play!"

Whoa! Uh, okay, that certainly changed things.

"What!?"

"Relax. You'll get it back later. But, for now, I play my last card face down and end my turn."

"Huh? Why didn't he attack Aniki this turn?" Sho asked. "He was wide open, thanks to that effect!"

"Because, Sho," Asuka said. "When Doom Lord uses his effect, the player can't attack until next turn."

"Oh."

"Hmph. Are you stupid? Everyone knows that!" Manjoume said.

Sho turned to him, glaring fiercely. "Shut up! I'm not the one who ran in here without thinking!"

He had a point. Everyone glared at Manjoume. Well, except Ojin. I mean, you need a face to glare, but he did turn to Manjoume.

"Yeah, yeah. Hurry up, you idiot, and get us out of here!" Manjoume yelled at me. "They're getting on my nerves!"

Well, in all fairness, it was his fault we were all there to begin with. But whatever.

"I draw! And summon Neo-Spacian Air Hummingbird in attack mode!" (Atk 800)

A humanoid, red hummingbird appeared.

"Heh. I've heard of that," Ed said. "That card can supposedly give you life points, depending on what I've got in my hand. Too bad that's nothing right now." Ed closed his eyes, giving a smug smile at what he perceived as my stupidity.

Yubel turned her back to me, saying, "I don't know him."

What else was new?

"Well, at least it beats that Doom Lord, I…guess," Johan said, sweating.

Wow. Really, Johan?

"I'm going to be an old man forever," Misawa said, running his hands down the side of his head.

Okay, this was getting a little old. Uh, pun not intended.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm an idiot and you all wish I'd just get a brain already," I said. "Sheesh. Air Hummingbird attacks Doom Lord!"

"Heh."

As Air Hummingbird attacked, Ed was smiling. That couldn't be good.

Ed: 2700
Judai: 2900

"Naturally a true hero will realize when they're not needed and pass the torch on to another!" Ed said, pushing a button on his duel disk. "D-Signal, activate! With it, I can summon another D-Hero to the field! And I choose Diamond Dude!" (Atk 1400)

Diamond Dude was a guy with a green cape and diamonds jutting out all over his body.

Sho put his wheels to his face—yeah, this was weird to describe—worried. "Oh, no! If Ed gets one more monster like that, he'll wipe Aniki out next turn!"

"Now, calm down, Sho," Asuka said. "Judai's turn isn't over yet. Hopefully he's got a plan to turn this around."

…Okay, she didn't think I stood a chance, either. Granted, my dueling wasn't exactly great that match, but still, did anyone think I could win?

Yubel crossed her arms and laughed, like I knew she would. "Ha! Judai have a plan? Not likely. Although he better at least have remembered what 'defending' is all about. Otherwise I'm gonna kill him if he loses this thing! I'm far more attractive to look at than this." She looked herself over in disgust.

Personally, I thought that she should stay like that. After all, that way, her inner self and outer self were finally matched. But I didn't say that, of course.

I growled, knowing full well what sorts of comments would be coming my way next. "At the risk of having everybody yell at me for being an idiot again, I end my turn."

As expected, there were cries of "Judai!" and "Aniki!" and "Prince!"

"Way to misuse a Neo-Spacian!" Yubel yelled. "Again!"

Sho turned to Johan and asked, "Do I look okay as a car?"

Don't answer that, Johan. Please.

"You're nothing compared to some of these guys, Sho," he said. "Don't worry. Do I look okay as a Ruby Carbuncle?"

…Calm, casual conversation about what they had been turned into. As if they'd be staying that way for a long time. They had absolutely no faith in me!

I closed my eyes and muttered, "Seriously. I need new friends…"

"My turn!" Ed said. He drew a card. "I activate my Diamond Dude's effect! I draw one card from my deck. If it's a normal spell card, I get to activate it next turn by sending it to the graveyard. But, if it's not a normal spell, I shuffle it back into my deck."

Well, that sounded like fun.

Ed closed his eyes, getting all dramatic on me. "Watch and learn. The power of destiny!" He pulled a card from his deck, then said, "I drew Monster Reborn!"

Well, that sucked for me.

Johan's eyes widened. "Oh, wow. Now that's a lucky draw!"

Yubel crossed her arms, glaring at him again. "Andersen!"

Johan shrugged at her, looking confused. "What? I never said it was cool."

Ed slipped the card into his graveyard, saying, "Well, I'd say that means this duel isn't over just yet. Although it might as well be. I summon my Disk Commander in attack mode!" (Atk 300)

"And that's enough monsters to take out Judai's life points," Ojin said, gloomy. "Why didn't he duel better? I know he's not this bad."

Geez, I just loved how sure they were that I was going to lose. Seriously, I did still have a face-down card, too. You know, those things I never pay enough attention to?

Misawa was holding his midsection, saying, "I think I broke my spleen…" as he lay down in a fetal position.

Sho turned back to Johan, and the two continued their casual conversation about their new appearances. "Your rubies go great with your fur color, Johan. Don't worry."

Johan looked relieved. "Oh, thank goodness! I'd hate not to match for the rest of my—"

"First of all, Misawa, a spleen isn't something you 'break,'" I said, tackling one problem at a time. "And, second, for crying out loud, guys, I haven't lost yet!"

"No, but you will! You're not a true hero!" Ed said, glaring. "You don't carry the burdens that we do!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"All you think about is yourself! I'm surprised, honestly, that you do care for those friends of yours, really." He crossed his arms. "What? Get so lonely that you can't stand leaving your allies behind? Talk about a poor excuse to watch out for them. I actually care about my friends!" He leaned forward as he finished, "That's why I'm doing this! Because I care about Saiou!"

What did he say!? Was he seriously implying that I didn't care about my friends!? That wasn't true! Not even close!

"I-is that really true?" Sho asked, sounding upset. "Is Aniki just using us to keep himself company? My nii-san said something like that, too…" He looked down.

No! It wasn't true!

Not helping (as usual), Yubel crossed her arms and said, "Well, he is a desperately lonely prince, so—"

Why, that no-good… Having a total stranger say that I didn't care about my friends was one thing. Having Yubel telling one of my friends that I didn't care about him was unacceptable! I'd set them all straight right now!

"Don't be so quick to judge, Ed," I said. "That's not the case at all. I really do care about the others—not just my friends, but the well-being of my kingdom! It may not seem like it to you, but I do more for my people than you would know!"

"Wait, hold up," Ojin said, sounding surprised. "He does?"

…

"That's a first," Yubel muttered. Then she humphed.

Oh, for the love of all that's holy!

Johan looked stunned. "Sheesh. And people think I'm bad…"

"You see? Even your allies think you're selfish. I'm doing this for the world and my friends!"

"Johan, Ojin, remind me to get better friends after this," I said, somewhat offended that neither of them realized that I cared about them at all. I mean, Johan I could understand. But I'd known Ojin for years! He should have known better! Unless he wasn't really my friend!

Ojin freaked out, apparently thinking that my irritated comment was a declaration of war. "Oh, please, Judai. Don't become Johan's enemy again! The war hasn't even—"

"As for you, Ed, what they know is nothing!" I said, ignoring Ojin. I mean, I was now thoroughly convinced that my friends didn't know me at all. Most of them had the excuse of inexperience since they hadn't known me that long, but Ojin couldn't claim ignorance on those grounds. "I do care about others, and I always have! Sure, some people may not think so, but what do they know!? I know how to care for my people, and I pay attention to their needs! And I've been doing it for way longer than any of you guys would think!"

Yeah, they'd really insulted me that time. I mean, being called irresponsible and stupid was one thing, but nobody could ever tell me I didn't care about anyone but myself! If that was the case, I wouldn't have gone back to Neospace! I mean, from what I'd remembered of my life at the time, it sucked! So why would I have wanted to go back to a place I hated if I was completely selfish!? And I wouldn't have stood up for Sho, seeing as I had no way of knowing we'd become friends! I wouldn't have told him to get out of his town and go anywhere else because I'd have said he should come with me! I wouldn't even have been there because I wouldn't have gone to save Asuka! Yes, I could be lazy. Yes, I could be an idiot. Yes, I was ridiculously irresponsible. But I wasn't selfish, and that was certain!

"Really," Ed said. "Then why don't you start showing it more! All you do is—"

I didn't need to justify myself to him! I cut him off, "Enough! Let's get on with this so I can show you what I mean!"

"So does he care or doesn't he?" Sho asked. "I'm confused…"

Oh, for the love of…

"He cares about you, Sho," Asuka said. "He just won't do much for everyone else."

Aw, come on!

"Oh. Okay," Sho said, relieved.

I cast them both a lame look. "Really?"

"Oh, whatever! It's obvious you're lying to cover your back, but that won't work on me! It's time a true hero stood up to you! You're not worthy of the powers you possess, so I'm taking your right to them! I attack with my Diamond Dude! Show Judai why it's his destiny to lose to me right now!"

Diamond Dude attacked, destroying Air Hummingbird.

Ed: 2700
Judai: 2300

Everyone cried out their respective titles for me, all those with faces having looks of horror fixed on them.

Yubel turned away again, saying, "That's it. He's so—"

I narrowed my eyes and said, "And people think I don't pay attention to face-downs." I pushed a button on my duel disk, activating my card that everyone seemed to have forgotten. "I activate Hero Signal!"

Ed started, his eyes widening. Guess even he was caught off-guard. Well, stop underestimating me so much! "No way! You set a trap!? But you're—"

"Smarter than anybody here thinks!" Muttering, I added, "Seriously, that act works way too well sometimes…"

The truth of the matter, sometimes I was an idiot. Other times, I acted like I was an idiot because it was easier to deal with an enemy who underestimated me than with one who knew my true capabilities. It was an idea I'd come up with when I was a toddler, and it was endorsed by one of my tutors, so I was more than happy to keep doing it. But, sometimes, I wished I hadn't started doing it. That duel was one of those times.

Ed just stared at me in awe.

"Anyway, since you destroyed my monster, this card lets me call out another one!" I went on. "And I'm using it to get Clayman out here in defense mode!" (2000)

"Yes! Finally, a wise move!" Johan cheered.

Manjoume's arms were crossed in annoyance. He muttered, "Took him long enough. Hmph!"

"Way to go, Judai! Your powers to hang in there have prevailed once again!" Ojin added.

"That's one thing he does right," Yubel muttered. "Not that that helps us any."

Ed stared a bit longer before, amazed, he said, "Good move. But destiny's on my side, so—"

"Destiny?" I cut him off, thinking he was sounding an awful lot like a Light Drone. "You sure you aren't with the Light? Because it swears by destiny. Who told you I'd lose? What is your deal?"

"Who said you'd lose? Why, Saiou did, of course. He told me a long time ago that I was destined to save him, and that's just what I'm going to do!"

Whoa, wait. Saiou? As in the same Saiou that was under the control of the Light of Destruction? The one who we were currently fighting over the right to challenge?

Suddenly this was sounding a lot more suspicious. Maybe Ed wasn't a Light Drone, but it didn't change the fact that he was too gullible to be allowed near the Light's leader. After all, he'd believe the guy when he said it was his "destiny" to lose!

No doubt about it—I had to win this duel!