Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.
The Butterfly Effect
Chapter LXXIX
Three turns in and it felt like the board was set. It was still really early in the game, too early to call, to be honest, but with the deficit of a thousand life points between the both of us and my next draw, God's Blessing, which I set and activated at the beginning of Kujaku's turn, it felt like I was set.
But to call it right then and there would have been stupid of me. To say that I'd done my part and I just had to let my deck to victory would have been completely idiotic on my part. Kujaku Mai was a professional duelist and to say that my duel with her was over on the second turn because I'd exploited a weakness and I had been lucky in my draws.
"You know, not a lot of people force me to use this. Activate Harpie's Feather Duster!"
And nothing, nothing drove that more home than the beginning of Kujaku's next turn.
I smiled. Chuckled even as I watched my spells and traps blow up one after the other and the magical shackles release their grip on us as if they'd never existed. I shook my head almost fondly as she activated a Cyber Bondage for her unequipped Harpie Lady.
"And summon Amazoness Swords Woman! Attack The Forgiving Maiden!"
And if I was a little shocked at the sound of my life points dropping instead of hers, the only thing that went through my mind as I watched them drop was this was it. This was the start of the match I'd been looking for.
"I'm guessing she makes me take the damage you were supposed to take?"
"Smart girl."
Fitting that she would equalize the score right then.
I drew with a chuckle on my lips, and only broke into a grin when I saw the card. Yes. Yes, it was incredibly fitting.
"I sacrifice The Forgiving Maiden to summon Angel Knight Perseus! Perseus, attack Harpie Lady Cyber Bondage!"
Fitting that I would get a friend the moment I was thinking about it.
Makes you wonder if Yami's words about the heart of the cards didn't have a bit of truth to them. If there wasn't something that guided the match beyond us.
"And since you've taken battle damage, I get to draw a card."
Although I was kind of missing God's Blessing right about now. Getting back some life points would have been really useful.
Then again, beggars can't be choosers and the only thing I had to do at this point was trust. Trust that my cards knew what they were doing and that I was reading everything correctly.
"And I activate it! Resurrection of the Dead! I special summon The Forgiving Maiden back to my field!"
Should have killed the Amazoness. This was going to come back to bite me in the ass, wasn't it?
"End turn."
"Draw. Activate Amazoness Curse Master! And I target Perseus!"
Yep. I made a bad call.
I watched the trade of attack happen and the Amazoness immediately rush to the offensive to impale Perseus. I cringed at the explosion noise and didn't dare to look at Kujaku's smug face afterward. And I could only purse my lips at the fact that my life points dropped to twenty-one hundred, three hundred below her own.
Had I not been hasty, I would have been in the lead at the moment. Hell, the game might have been in the bag. Fuck.
"Regretting your choice?"
"You have no idea."
And her laughter at my comment did nothing to help the situation.
How the hell was I going to salvage this?
No time like the present.
I drew. And, after a quick breath, I dared to look. Only to nearly cringe at the sight. I wasn't surprised. I wasn't even remotely surprised that this, this was how this game was going. But that reminder would have better placed at any other time.
Then again, it was a damn good indicator of what I had to do.
"I sacrifice The Forgiving Maiden for Fallen Angel Marie! I then remove both Perseus and the Maiden from play to special summon Holy Shine Soul!"
The two monsters in my graveyard were spat back out and put back into my deck box. I attacked with little restraint, throwing Marie and Holy Shine Soul at Amazoness Swords Woman and the Harpie Lady respectively while thanking everything for Holy Shine Soul's effect. 'Cause sure, I would have eliminated them without her effect, but Kujaku's monsters dropping by three hundred attack was a blessing at this point.
Nineteen hundred to sixteen. Now if only I could keep this momentum going…
"End Turn."
"Draw. Summon Amazoness Fighter and activate Amazoness Curse Master!"
… Of fucking course not.
I heard more than saw my life points drop to fourteen hundred as Amazoness Fighter took out Holy Shine Soul. I felt more than noticed the smile Kujaku gave as she announced the end of her turn, leading to my draw. And I could little at the annoyance that I felt as I took in the card I'd just drawn, not upset at it, but at the fact that I, again, hadn't called something like this.
Kujaku Mai was no longer the mistress of the skies. She led the skies and the land with her Harpies and her Amazonesses. So of course she would make sure her deck was balanced with both if only to take care of monsters and spells and traps efficiently.
Fine. If she wanted to force my hand, fine. She was going to regret what she was going to find.
"Summon Agent of Wisdom — Mercury in defense! Marie! Attack!"
No matter the amount it took me to lower her life points.
Amazoness Fighter saved her with an effect, and her summon of Dunamis Valkyria to take out Marie felt almost like an insult. How dare she try for a claim to the heavens. How dare she even touch them. She had no idea how they even worked.
I drew two cards and heard my life point counter take off the moment my turn came around. I heard her almost lose it at those two facts, stating that it had not happened so far and that she required an explanation.
"Mercury gives me another card if I don't have any hand and the monster you took out, Fallen Angel Marie, gives me two hundred life points each turn while she's in the Graveyard."
"… What?!"
No, she had no idea what she was messing with.
Speaking of which...
"Summon Big Bang Girl in attack and equip her with Black Pendant!"
How about a warning?
I watched Kujaku frantically go through her Disk for the effect of both cards as I ended my turn with an eye on Big Bang Girl's eighteen hundred attack points. She was usually better off in defense with a Horn of Light, creating a defensive wall that took out life points while I gained them. But, this time, she was best in attack, tempting the possibility of taken life points while Black Pendant served as a deterrent.
"… You bitch."
And nothing proved that better than Kujaku swearing.
Catch twenty-two. She'd have to pull something out of her ass to circumvent this. Which, from the look on face after her draw, she didn't have.
Contain yourself, you haven't won yet.
"Summon Amazoness Swords Woman! And I attack!"
And, from the look of things, Kujaku isn't about to go down without a fight.
I watched her take out both Big Bang Girl and Dunamis Valkyria in a suicidal launch before Mercury blocked the Swords Woman's attack. I heard both our life counters drop to fourteen hundred and thirteen hundred respectively before mine went up again as Kujaku ended her turn and I drew my cards. And I couldn't help but stare at them as Kujaku waited for my move.
Venus… and Angel's Life Blood. I had this.
I summoned Venus with little to no preamble before activating Angel's Life Blood and summoning the Holy Shine Balls. I called for an attack on Swords Woman with Venus before launching a direct attack with all three Holy Shine Balls, not caring for the life point loss. And I straightened, took a breath, and released it as I heard her life point counter drop to zero as mine shone with seven hundred before quickly fading away.
Goal accomplished. Kujaku Mai was out of the tournament.
"That's my little sister."
And the fact that I felt a hand land on my head the moment it came to an end along with those words just made me feel proud.