Jaden's eyes widened. "Bastion, look out!" he shouted, "He's got a hand trap!"

"What?!" Bastion exclaimed.

"Too late," Aster grinned, even as he fell backward from Shi En's attack. "I activate an effect! Come forth, Dynatag!"

Obeying its master's words, a towering wretch of a man materialized beneath Aster's falling form. It was a bulbous figure, pulsing and twisting as it glowed with all the force of an endless explosion. It caught Aster as he fell, grinning sinisterly even as he gazed down upon the Pro's battered figure.

"What?" Bastion asked. "What is that monster, and why haven't you taken any damage my attack?!"

"Heh..." Aster smiled weakly. "It's because...of his effect. When I'd take damage from a battle, I can discard this big guy from my hand to negate it. But...that's not the best part of all this."

Dynatag's grin grew wider as Aster continued to explain.

"You see," Aster muttered. "When I use this effect. Dynatag's second ability kicks in. That is to say...both you and I...take 1000 points of damage."

"What? But then that means-!"

"See you on the other side," Aster said. He gazed up into Dynatag's face, and grinned. "Do it."

Dynatag didn't need to be told twice. Smiling even in the face of death, the glowing warrior expanded to his heart's content, until finally - he exploded.

"It...It can't be...!" Bastion breathed. He glanced to his hand to see if there was anything he could do, but all that stared back at him were useless cards and effects. Hopeless, he closed his eyes, and let the blast take him.

'Everyone,' he thought. 'I'm sorry.'

He vanished, swallowed by fire and ash, and Aster?

Aster smiled.

Yu-Gi-Oh!
Tag Force
Learning to Shine
Chapter 37

Fire surged across both fields. A cloud of smoke and ash soon followed, shaking the very foundation of the arena as the two Duelists vanished into its midst.

"Bastion!" Konami, Jaden, and Syrus cried out, their voices lost in the ensuing noise of the burning eruption.

"It would seem I spoke too soon," Wisteria mused. "Though he was poised to win, Bastion let his guard down at a critical moment. Still, to think that their team would have a card like that at their disposal... It wouldn't be wise for me to underestimate them."

As the dust slowly began to settle, the two figures of the beaten Duelists reappeared. Both of them were laid out across the floor, neither capable of moving an inch after enduring the horrendous explosion that engulfed both of their Life Points.

"Damn it Aster!" Chazz roared as he laid eyes on the beaten Pro, "Let me know before you do something stupid like that! That explosion of yours nearly got soot on my jacket!"

"Hey," Jaden shouted. "Don't yell at your teammate like that. Can't you see he's already down enough as is? He doesn't need your yelling after he already did his best!"

"Shut up, slacker! No one asked for your opinion!" Chazz snarled, stepping into the arena and slamming his foot down on Aster's back. "He might've taken that chump Bastion out with him, but at the end of the day, he still lost the Duel! He's a loser, and do you know what we do with losers? We throw 'em out with the garbage!"

Ruthlessly, Chazz then kicked Aster so that he rolled off the stage and fell disgracefully to the feet of Sartorius. The arena was silent for a moment, as if stunned by Chazz's display of cruelty, but before long, a resounding cheer spread throughout the crowd.

"YEAH! FORGET THAT LOSER! THROW HIM IN THE TRASH! CHAZZ IT UP! CHAZZ IT UP!"

"H-Hell yeah!" Mindy too, roared with the crowd. "You tell those rebel losers what's what, Chazz. Or better yet, why don't we just show them?!" With a wink and a smile, Mindy raised her hand high into the sky and snapped her fingers. "Behold, slacker scum, the super sensation seating area we arranged for the losers of this little event!"

Bright lights burst from the ceiling of the arena, and moments later, a pair of chain-like structures fell upon both Aster and Bastion. They wrapped around the two boys as if guided by a divine will, before slowly raising them up into the sky so that they hovered at least thirty feet off the ground.

"W-What...?" Bastion murmured weakly, barely mustering the strength to glance at his surroundings as he felt himself glide through the open air.

"I hope you enjoy the view from up there, loser." Alexis smirked. "Because you'll be up there for a while."

"This is-This is just cruel!" Wisteria gasped, "I could understand attempting to humiliate us, but to do it their own teammate as well is just-!"

"BLEH!" Mindy interrupted, shoving a thumbs-down in Wisteria's face as she spoke. "Worthless coma patients like you should their mouths shut, and take in the glory of our master's vision, got it?!"

"I-I beg your pardon?!"

"Hehehe, looks like that Duel got our MC all fired up!" Hassleberry said as he stepped into the arena beside Chazz. "But that's fine, because this prehistoric beast is ready to bare his fangs as well! Raaaaaaaaaaaaawr!" With a loud and angry bellow, Hassleberry continued to hype the crowd. Chazz took in the scene with a smirk.

"Yeah, that's right. It's about time for you to step in now, isn't it?" he asked. "Go right ahead. Just make sure not to bite the bullet like that so-called 'Pro' of ours, or you'll be the next one hanging from the ceiling, got it?!"

"Challenge accepted Sarge!" Hassleberry grinned while slamming his fists together. "Whoever those rebels send out next...is in for the beating of a lifetime!"

"Chazz...Hassleberry...even Alexis...!" Jaden murmured softly, unable to believe his friends were completely fine with what they were seeing. "You guys...I can't...!"

"Wisteria," Konami said, glaring past the roaring Hassleberry toward Sartorius' ever smiling visage. "You'd better not lose."

"Hmph," The girl smirked as she passed by him, even going so far as to flip her hair as she did. "You don't have to tell me twice."

She stepped into the arena and raised her Duel Disk, taking command of what remained of Bastion's field, even as Mindy started to speak again from above.

"Alright!" the girl screeched into the mic, "The intermission is over, everyone, and it's time to get this show back on the road!"

The crowd cheered at her words, again chanting the Society's mantra while Hassleberry raised his own Duel Disk. Mindy continued to cheer them on, until finally, she raised her hand for a three-count.

"In three, two, one...!" she shouted.

"LET THE DUEL RECOMMENCE!"

WISTERIA VS HASSLEBERRY

WISTERIA - 1800 LP
HASSLEBERRY - 2000 LP

"W-What's this? Why are my Life Points at a mere 1800?!" Wisteria asked.

"Hehehehe, thought you'd jump in without going over the rules, huh slacker?!" Mindy asked. "Well, let this pure and gentle Mindy fill you in on all the little details! See, since that loser teammate of yours took over 2000 points of damage when Aster beat him, you have to suffer whatever was left over as damage to your number of starting Life Points. In this case, since Bastion took 200 extra points of damage, that means that 200 is subtracted out of your starting total. Pretty simple, yeah? It should be, because even you should be able to remember that despite being split between four different Duelists, this grand event is still nothing more than an 8000 Life Point Duel!"

"I see, in other words, we'll have to think about more than just ourselves when we lose Life Points," Konami realized. "Otherwise, our opponents still might be able to OTK us, provided they have enough manpower."

"But that's true for those guys as well!" Syrus realized with a smile. "And since the field carries over as well, that means Wisteria has more than enough manpower to wipe both Hassleberry and Alexis from the game right now!"

"WRONG!" Mindy shouted. "I don't know what must be going on in that broken little brain of yours, but there's no way that we're letting that manipulative minx go first! In case you remember, even though it was Aster's card that destroyed them both, it was during Bastion's Battle Phase that the card was activated. Know what that means?"

"N-No?" Syrus murmured.

"It means that that little witch won't be able to attack this time, since the glorious Society is the one who'll be getting the first move!"

"Hm," Wisteria whispered. "How unfortunate. And here I was hoping that I'd get to attack with Bastion's Grandmaster for an easy win."

"Heha," Hassleberry grinned while drawing his starting hand, "It would've made for a nice trick, but unfortunately for you, this Tyranno Hassleberry's stickin' around!"

"Careful," Wisteria retorted, shuffling her deck before drawing her own five cards. "You wouldn't want to overstay your welcome."

Hassleberry's grinned only widened at her words, and he reached into his deck to draw another card. "It's my turn," he growled as he bent down in a forceful position. "I draw!"

TURN NINE - HASSLEBERRY - 2000 LP - SIX CARDS

"All right!" Hassleberry said with a smile while he stared at his hand. "Whaddaya say we kick things off with a bang by following in the footsteps of our predecessors?"

Wisteria felt her gaze narrow. "And just what is that supposed to mean?" she asked, earning a bemused sigh from her opponent.

"Figures I'd be the one stuck dueling against a dumb girl," Hassleberry murmured. "What I'm tryin' to ask is whether or not you'd like to get in on some Special Summonin' action!"

"I'd rather not," Wisteria drawled, knowing full well that Special Summons from her opponent were not bound to be a good thing.

Hassleberry, acknowledging her reluctance, smiled nastily. "Sorry darlin'," he told her as he pulled a card from his hand, "but you don't exactly get a choice in the matter, 'cause I'm Special Summonin' my Gilasaurus!"

A small, brown, velocirapter roared out as it materialized onto Hassleberry's field, snapping and screeching at nothing as it clawed its way into Attack Position.

Gilasaurus - LV3 - EARTH - Dinosaur - (1400/400)

"Oh great, dinosaurs." Wisteria drawled, "I can hear the puns already."

"Aw, you don't gotta be such a nervous rex about it!" Hassleberry laughed, "This one's not that bad. See, when Gilasaurus here is Special Summoned from my hand, you get to bring back one monster from yo' Graveyard. Or, your friend's Graveyard, in this case."

"Ugh, you mean I have to stare at even more of that nerd's ancient history?" Wisteria scoffed. "Fine! If I absolutely must choose then I suppose I'll go with...Kagemusha of the Six Samurai, in Defense Position!"

The green-clothed warrior hummed as he rose from the floor beneath one of Wisteria's Monster Zones. He turned for a moment to regard his new master cautiously, before reluctantly bowing his head and kneeling to take a defensive stance.

Kagemusha of the Six Samurai - LV2 - EARTH - Warrior - (400/1800)

"See there, you did it? Now tell me, was that so hard?"

"Yes," Wisteria drawled. "Yes, it was."

"Well, too bad! Because as of right now, you're gonna have to do it again, 'cause I'm bringing out another Gilasaurus, in Attack Position!"

A second velociraptor cried out as it appeared next to the first. Together, the two small dinosaurs turned their gaze toward Wisteria, eyeing her hungrily as if she were their next meal.

Gilasaurus - LV3 - EARTH - Dinosaur - (1400/400)

"Another second Special Summon this soon?" Wisteria inquired. "Let me guess. You're the kind who likes to blow their load early?"

"Actually, it's the opposite," Hassleberry laughed. "My girl's always tellin' me about how I got an E-reptile dysfunction!"

"Oh my god, Jaden, make it stahp." Syrus groaned.

Jaden smiled sheepishly, "Yeah, I guess that one was pretty bad, huh?"

"Just bad?" Konami asked the two of them with a small smirk on his face. "I think you meant to say, 'it's so bad, it extincts!'"

There were numerous groans from around him, but Hassleberry was in downright hysterics.

"Hahahahahaha! It 'extincts' he said! It 'extincts!'" he laughed. "Aw, aw man that was a good one!"

"And yet somehow, I'm still unamused." Wisteria drawled. She glanced to Bastion's Graveyard once more. "Still, it'd be uncouth of me to turn down yet another free Special Summon, so I take advantage of your kindness to bring back this - Kageki of the Legendary Six Samurai! Again, in Defense Position!"

The dual-wielding warrior waved his blades around wildly as he reappeared beside his fellow Synchro Material, then stabbed both swords down into the ground before taking up a meditative stance.

LSS Kageki - LV3 - WIND - Warrior - (200/2000)

'Due to his effect, Kageki should gain an additional 1500 Attack Points when there are different 'Six Samurai' monsters on the field, but I'm not sure I should be relying on that...!' Wisteria thought.

"Hehe...four monsters huh?" Hassleberry questioned. "Not bad, looks like my big guy will be having quite the meal then."

"I beg your pardon?" Wisteria asked.

"Oh, don't mind me," Hassleberry said, waving off her concerns. "I was just thinkin' about how funny it's gonna be...once all those monsters you revived are back in the Grave."

Wisteria's eyes widened as Hassleberry's hands flew forth.

"I now tribute my Level Three Gilasaurus and Level Three Gilasaurus to perform an Advanced Summon!" the boy shouted as he moved, watching as both of his dinos vanished into gold particles of light. "Absolute predator of the Jurassic Age, lay claim to your territory now! Tribute Summon! Level Eight, Ultimate Tyranno!"

The earth shifted and groaned with each word Hassleberry said, and as he finally placed his desired card upon his Duel Disk, the unmistakable stomps of a giant creature could heard throughout the stadium. Suddenly, a raging black tyrannosaurus burst through the wall behind Hassleberry, roaring angrily before setting its gleaming yellow eyes upon Wisteria's side of the field.

Ultimate Tyranno - LV8 - EARTH - Dinosaur - (3000/2200)

"Aww yeah," Hassleberry roared in unison with his monster. "now that this baby is out here, your field is as good as gone!"

"I beg to differ," Wisteria argued. "Your monster may have superior power compared to mine, but I still have the numbers! Even if you attack with it during your Battle Phase, I'll still have three monsters capable of surviving until my next turn!"

Hassleberry snorted. "Is that so? Sorry to burst your bubble, princess, but attack power isn't the only thing is bad boy's packin'! He came locked and loaded with a special ability too, one that lets him...attack every monster my opponent controls!"

"Ah! What?!" Wisteria gasped, "but you can't do that!"

"You bet Jurassican!" Hassleberry barked. "And since I can, I'm gonna have fun taking out that warlord Shi En...!" With a grin, he raised his hand to announce an attack, only to halt as a loud banging echoed across his side of the field.

"Hey, muscle-head!" Alexis barked, slamming her palm against the internal arena floor to grab Hassleberry's attention. "Don't be stupid! That monster is supposed to be the leader of that dweeb's archetype, meaning that like Bastion's older cards, it likely has the ability to prevent his destruction at the cost of another monster! If you attack willy-nilly, you'll just be wasting your time! Start with those weakers ones, or that old goon they call a Grandmaster! They seem to lack the protection ability Shien cards are known for!"

"Oh, is that right?" Hassleberry asked. "In that case, thanks for the heads-up, I'll be sure to let the big guy know...while he's chowing down on those monsters! Go, Ultimate Tyranno! Let's start with the small fry! Devour that Kagemusha or whatever whole!"

The ultra predator roared upon hearing Hassleberry's command, and it charged forward into Wisteria's field without a single regard for its safety. In mere seconds, it had stomped upon the revived Tuner, and moved on to its next target.

"Alright," roared Hassleberry, "let's take on that other peon next! Gobble down that Kageki, and have yourself some legendary manmeat!"

Ultimate Tyranno snarled, taking a bite out of the smaller monster and crunching it in half.

"Next, the Grandmaster!" Hassleberry continued.

'Urk...!' Wisteria winced, feeling the pain as the old warrior was also beaten down.

"And finally," Hassleberry screamed, "take out that Synchro Monster that cost us our teammate! Raaaaaaaaaaaawr!"

Shi En shattered like glass, vanishing into gold mist as the absolute predator stomped down upon his form. The force of the crushing blow sent waves of air throughout the arena, pushing Wisteria back several inches while taking a bite out of her Life Points.

WISTERIA - 400 LP
HASSLEBERRY - 2000 LP

"FUCK YEAH, HASSLEBERRY! KILL THAT WRETCHED WHORE!" Mindy shrieked, incredibly eager to watch Wisteria fall to pieces. "SHOW 'EM WHAT IT MEANS TO MESS WITH THE SOCIETY, YEAH!"

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but it looks like Mindy's gotten even worse." Syrus mumbled.

"This isn't good," Jaden noted, instead focusing on the obvious. "Wisteria's Life Points are already this low, and she hasn't even had a turn yet. At this rate, she'll be kicked out without even scratching Hassleberry!"

"Is that what you think?" Konami asked him.

Jaden turned to stare at his teammate, surprised.

"Wisteria is many things, but a quitter she is not. A person as stubborn as her going down without even hitting her opponent? I don't think so. She's bound to make a comeback, and if that look on her face is any indication...she may already have what she needs."

"Hahahahahahaha!" Hassleberry laughed, "How is it? How do you find the power of my Ultimate Tyranno? Makes you wanna fall to your knees and despair, doesn't he?"

"How ridiculous," Wisteria muttered. "You call that power? All you did was trample over me like some reckless barbarian! No, now that I think about it, you're even worse than a barbarian. It's obvious that someone like you...can only be described as a fumbling cow!"

"C-Cow?!" Hassleberry shouted. "You take that back, I'm a dangerous dino, no matter how you look at it!"

"You? A dinosaur? Are you stupid or something? Has all that prehistoric mumbo jumbo muddled your brain? From what I see, you are and will always be nothing more than a pathetic insect vying for the attention of others!"

"But...you just called me a cow..."

Wisteria continued as if he hadn't even spoken, "And much like the moths, flickering close to the flame, I shall endeavor to watch you burn! My turn, draw!"

TURN TEN - WISTERIA - 400 LP - SIX CARDS

"I'll show you...how a Duelist properly manages their resources! I activate the Ritual Spell - Gishki Aquamirror!"

"Ah, a Ritual Spell, now?!" Hassleberry gasped.

"That's right, and like most Rituals, this one allows me to Special Summon a Ritual Monster by offering Tributes from my hand." Wisteria explained, "In order to Ritual Summon the Level Eight Soul Ogre, I shall be offering the Level Three Gishki Diviner, and the Level Four Gishki Chain!"

"Level Three and Level Four-? Ah, but hang on a second!" Hassleberry shouted, "That only adds up to Seven! You're missing a digit, sistah!"

"Oh, well, what do you know? It looks you've got some brains, after all!" Wisteria replied. "Yes, I did indeed only make use of seven levels, and do you want to know why?"

"Obviously," Hassleberry grunted.

"It's because..." Wisteria began, "I'll be activating Bastion's card from the Grave!"

As if sensing her intentions, the Sphere Kuriboh Bastion once used to protect himself reappeared, hovering high above the ground for everyone to see.

"I activate Sphere Kuriboh's second ability!" Wisteria explained, "When he's in the Graveyard, I can banish him as an offering for the summon of a Ritual Monster! Since he's Level One, that means I only needed to make seven Levels in my hand to Special Summon this beast!"

"Guh...so that's what you were planning!"

"Fufu...hand advantage is important, after all," Wisteria mused, "Especially since...I'll be needing cards in my hand to use this one's abilities to the fullest! Come forth, Evigishki Soul Ogre!"

A torrent of water rained down from the ceiling at Wisteria's beckoning, sending pillars of fluid flying everywhere. A giant behemoth of a reptile soon emerged from within, walking freely on its hind legs and bearing the crest of the aqua mirror proudly upon its chest.

Evigishki Soul Ogre - LV8 - WATER - Aqua - (2800/2800)

Hassleberry breathed a sigh of relief.

"And here I thought you were summoning a powerful monster!" he laughed. "Sorry girlie, but that overgrown frog of yours just doesn't have what it takes to stand up against my Ultimate Tyranno!"

"On the contrary," Wisteria said. "It's your monster that doesn't have what it takes to stand up against mine. I activate my Soul Ogre's special effect! Once per turn, I can discard a "Gishki" monster from my hand and target a face-up card you control. And do you want me to tell you what happens to the card I choose to target?" she asked, smirking as Hassleberry's eyes begin to widen.

"Their...Attack Points...increase?" he asked hopefully.

Wisteria smirked. "Wrong. They're sent back to your deck!" She swung her arm forward in a powerful arc, and snapped her fingers dramatically. "Go, Soul Ogre! Clear my foe's board and show him the might of this proud goddess! Begone, Knave!"

The robed reptile gaped its maw wide and released a high-pitched shriek across the field, sending visible ripples through the air that pounded mercilessly into the Ultimate Tyranno's face. The terrible tyrannosaur roared in pain and fell backward, vanishing from the field and fleeing deep into the recesses of Hassleberry's deck.

"N-No way...! My Ultimate Tyranno was-!"

"-Beaten!" Wisteria barked, "And now, so are you! Soul Ogre, Direct Attack!"

Hassleberry's eyes widened, and with a pitiful scream, his body was raked clean through by Wisteria's Ritual.

"Gwuaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaghk!"

WISTERIA - 400 LP
HASSLEBERRY - -800 LP

"I have just one more thing to say to you," Wisteria told the shellshocked dino-user. "I came, I saur, I conquered."

She turned her back to him then, and paid no mind as the horrified screams of the crowd echoed through the stadium once more.

Chapter 37
END

A powerful attack, a deadly move! In response to this declaration, Alexis strikes back! Next time, on Yu-Gi-Oh! Tag Force, a ferocious battle begins!